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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/24311173">A Grain of Sand, a Universe of Beaches</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/archiveofourscone/pseuds/archiveofourscone'>archiveofourscone</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>Beast Island [5]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>She-Ra and the Princesses of Power (2018)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>A little, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, F/F, Fluff, Like, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, Tooth-Rotting Fluff, at some points</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-05-21</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-11-28</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-04 03:40:35</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>General Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>2</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>20,622</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/24311173</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/archiveofourscone/pseuds/archiveofourscone</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>“Do the Magicats have a binding ceremony?”</p>
<p>“Of course, we do,” Catra answers idly, finally deciding on a cloak and wrapping it around her shoulders, “C’yra made me learn about it a few years ago. According to her, I could be asked to perform the ceremony.”</p>
<p>“Have you ever thought about it?” Adora sounds a little hesitant, “For us, I mean.”</p>
<p>Catra turns, and Adora’s still sitting on the bed, her smile soft and sweet and shy.</p>
<p>“Have you?”</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Adora/Catra (She-Ra)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>Beast Island [5]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/series/1349011</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>92</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>538</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Collections:</b></td><td>She-Ra, read again she ra</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>1. The Question of Marriage</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>"Do I love you? My god, if your love were a grain of sand, mine would be a universe of beaches." ~William Goldman, <i>The Princess Bride</i></p>
<p>Well, hi. Anybody still out there? I know I said I would update this series a long time ago, but I kept writing and realized I didn't really have a solid end. There was no ending that felt just right, and so I figured that since one ending didn't feel right, why don't I do a bunch of endings? So, this will be like little snapshots of Catra and Adora's lives after the war is over, and this is the first part. I also have one or two more in mind, but I'm also happy to take prompts.</p>
<p>Anyway, it's been a while, and hell, the series is even over now (and Catradora is canon!), but I hope you enjoy this.</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Catra feels shifting from underneath her, and without thinking, she tightens her grip.</p>
<p>Adora laughs softly. “Catra,” she whispers into Catra’s hair, “We should probably get up.”</p>
<p>“If you get out of this bed, I’m breaking up with you,” Catra mumbles, burying her face against Adora’s neck.</p>
<p>“I didn’t know the consequences were so dire,” Adora jokes, her fingers coming up to run through Catra’s mane.</p>
<p>Catra just nods and lets herself sink into the comfort of the soft morning and her warm girlfriend giving her affection. She can’t stop the quiet purrs rumbling in her chest, and Adora’s fingers move from her mane down her back.</p>
<p>“You have duties you can’t ignore, you know,” Adora says, and Catra doesn’t acknowledge it.</p>
<p>She knows she has duties. She’s surprised Hakim hasn’t burst through her door with her daily schedule and interrupted their first few peacefully minutes of the day.</p>
<p>She knows that there are trade agreements to look over, merchants and vendors to visit, and advisors to try and shake off throughout the day for just a few minutes so that she can have time to herself.</p>
<p>Catra wonders if she can abdicate right now, even if she isn’t queen yet.</p>
<p>Maybe she can convince C’yra to choose a less annoying advisor.</p>
<p>Catra finally opens her eyes to see that the late morning sun has cast a warm orange glow throughout the room. Adora’s hair, finally free of its ponytail and cut to shoulder length, catches it just so, and blonde hair shines even brighter than She-Ra’s ever could.</p>
<p>She pushes herself up to her elbows and sighs. “How did I become the one with all the responsibilities?”</p>
<p>Adora smiles, “I guess She-Ra isn’t important now that there’s no war to fight.”</p>
<p>Catra scoffs, “It’s been, what? Four years since the Second Battle of Bright Moon, and people still invite you to celebrations.”</p>
<p>“Someone’s just jealous that the last one made a She-Ra cake.”</p>
<p>“Other people fought in that battle.”</p>
<p>“Just admit it, Catra.”</p>
<p>“I’m <em>not</em> jealous of your dumb cake.”</p>
<p>Adora’s smile becomes a mischievous smirk, and Catra reacts before Adora gets a chance to gain the upper hand.</p>
<p>It helps that Catra’s already on top. It means that Adora has to put more strength into her efforts to flip them, and while Catra knows she has the strength to do it, she acts fast enough to stop it.</p>
<p>Adora’s pinned, and it’s Catra turn to smirk. “You thought you were going to be able to win that?” She leans in close, so close that their lips brush where she breathes out, “Pathetic.”</p>
<p>“Have you gotten faster?” Adora asks breathily, and Catra knows it’s not from her small, unsuccessful attempt to flip them, “I think you’ve gotten faster.”</p>
<p>“Not since yesterday.” Catra teases.</p>
<p>Adora tries pushing up to kiss her, but just as quick as she ruined Adora’s attempt to flip them, Catra pushes up and away.</p>
<p>“Well, you did say I have things to attend to,” Catra says idly, sitting up and disentangling herself from Adora, “Being the Magicat princess is truly such an important job, and what kind of monarch would I be if I just lazed around with the great She-Ra in bed all day?”</p>
<p>She goes to get out of bed, and Adora does exactly what she wants.</p>
<p>Adora grabs Catra’s wrist and pulls her just enough to bring her back down to the bed before finally getting exactly what she wanted just a few minutes ago.</p>
<p>Catra grins, “Now who doesn’t want to get out of bed?”</p>
<p>Adora brushes a few stray strands of hair from Catra’s face. “You play dirty.”</p>
<p>“I’ve never liked playing by the rules,” Catra jokes, her hands coming up to rest against Adora’s hips.</p>
<p>“Still so evil,” Adora says through a smile, her eyes sparkling.</p>
<p>“I’m <em>reformed</em>.” Catra pulls Adora down to her, all of the banter getting in the way of what she would rather do.</p>
<p>Adora resists, “Someone’s really anxious after all that teasing before.”</p>
<p>“Why do I date you?”</p>
<p>“You ask that a lot for someone’s who’s been dating me for five years.”</p>
<p>“You’re infuriating,” Catra starts listing, “Way too buff,” Adora hums as if in understanding of Catra’s false negatives, “You steal the blankets,” Adora barks out a laugh, “And annoyingly nice and thoughtful.”</p>
<p>Catra stays away from the words she knows grate at Adora, words tainted by a past that left a mark on them like scars.</p>
<p>Adora’s smile is cocky, and it reminds Catra of those moments in the Horde when Adora knew she was winning, and it doesn’t hurt like it used to. Catra doesn’t think about the sting of perpetually being second best or all the cutting words she received for losing.</p>
<p>All she remembers are the times when it was just them, and Adora gaining the upper hand was just another fun moment of their spar away from Shadow Weaver’s judgement or the bullies within the squad.</p>
<p>“Would you like to keep listing all of my good qualities?” Adora asks, finally leaning in like Catra wanted a few minutes before.</p>
<p>“Oh right,” Catra rolls her eyes, “I forgot to say an ego the size of Etheria.”</p>
<p>“That’s usually the first thing you list.”</p>
<p>Catra’s grip on Adora’s hips tighten as Adora starts peppering small kisses along Catra’s jaw.</p>
<p>“I wanted it last for the emphasis,” Catra breathes out.</p>
<p>She feels Adora’s smile against her throat, and just as her hands slip up into Adora’s hair, there’s a knock at her bedroom door.</p>
<p>Catra groans, and Adora sinks into her with a sigh.</p>
<p>“I swear, I’m going to murder him,” Catra says softly so that Hakim can’t hear her from the other side of the door, “I’m going to bury him so deeply in the Kingdom of Snows that no one will find him for a thousand years.”</p>
<p>There’s another knock as Adora chuckles and mockingly says, “Reformed,” right by Catra’s ear.</p>
<p>“What?” Catra says, loud enough that she knows Hakim can hear her on the other side.</p>
<p>“Are you awake, Princess?” Hakim asks, his voice muddled through the door, and Catra rolls her eyes.</p>
<p>“Obviously,” Adora and Catra say at the same time, but only Catra’s voice is loud enough to be heard.</p>
<p>“You’re needed in the Throne Room at the next possible convenience,” Hakim informs her.</p>
<p>“By whose insistence?”</p>
<p>“The queen.”</p>
<p>“They’re going to find C’yra’s body right beside his,” Catra whispers just to Adora, and as Adora tries muffling her laughter, she says, “Tell Queen C’yra that I will be there in 30 minutes.”</p>
<p>“Yes, Princess.”</p>
<p>Catra doesn’t hear footsteps.</p>
<p>“Go, Hakim.”</p>
<p>“Yes, Princess.”</p>
<p>She finally hears footsteps retreat down the hall, and Adora picks herself up off of Catra. “C’yra has a funny way of picking on you.”</p>
<p>Catra spreads out on the bed as Adora gets up and starts looking for something to wear. “She knows Hakim is driving me nuts,” Catra complains, “Although using Hakim to annoy me is borderline diabolical.”</p>
<p>“Oh yeah,” Adora says sarcastically, “Someone call the Princess Alliance. We have a new evil force to defeat.”</p>
<p>“You’re not taking my suffering seriously.”</p>
<p>“You’re right,” Adora comes and sits on the edge of the bed, “Would you like me to call a meeting to discuss this blatant breaking of the Treaties?”</p>
<p>Catra’s tail comes up to wrap around Adora’s wrist absentmindedly, and she plays with Adora’s fingers just for some contact. “Just because you said that, now I’m going to call a meeting, and everyone is going to show up and I’m going to blame it on you.”</p>
<p>Adora leans forward and kisses Catra lightly. “You don’t have enough time in your busy schedule to make it over to Bright Moon.”</p>
<p>She goes to move away, but Catra doesn’t let her. That small kiss isn’t how she wanted to start her morning. She wants more, and it’s obvious Adora is on the same page, because she doesn’t resist. She sinks into Catra, and they kiss long and slow.</p>
<p>It’s Adora who pulls away first, though. “Responsibilities, Catra.”</p>
<p>“I wasn’t even this busy as Hordak’s second-in-command,” she complains, pulling herself out of bed to finally get ready.</p>
<p>Adora gets dressed before Catra, and she sits on the bed and watches Catra try and decide how formal she has to dress for the day.</p>
<p>“Hey, Catra?” Adora asks, breaking the quiet.</p>
<p>“Yeah?”</p>
<p>“Do the Magicats have a binding ceremony?”</p>
<p>“Of course, we do,” Catra answers idly, finally deciding on a cloak and wrapping it around her shoulders, “C’yra made me learn about it a few years ago. According to her, I could be asked to perform the ceremony.”</p>
<p>“Have you ever thought about it?” Adora sounds a little hesitant, “For us, I mean.”</p>
<p>Catra turns, and Adora’s still sitting on the bed, her smile soft and sweet and shy.</p>
<p>“Have you?”</p>
<p>“Not extensively,” Adora answers honestly, “After all of those years in the Horde, it didn’t even cross my mind that we would need to bind ourselves to each other so formally.”</p>
<p>Catra lets out a relieved laugh, “I thought we were just fine as we are now.”</p>
<p>“Me too!” Adora says, “We live together, and you’re it for me. I just didn’t realize everyone outside of the Horde expects something so formal around this point in our relationship.”</p>
<p>“What brought this up?” Catra asks out of curiosity.</p>
<p>“Glimmer,” Adora answers with a fond roll of her eyes, “She brought up marriage and then asked me whether the Magicat marriage ceremony was different than Bright Moon’s.”</p>
<p>“It is,” Catra says, then adds, “You can also inform her that the state of our relationship is none of her business.”</p>
<p>“With that level of seriousness?”</p>
<p>“Add a glare for good measure.”</p>
<p>“Yes, Princess Catra.”</p>
<p>Catra glares at Adora before looking past her to the clock on her bedside table.</p>
<p>“Shit,” Catra rushes over and gives Adora one last kiss, “If I don’t get to the Throne Room in the next five minutes, Hakim might just break down our door.”</p>
<p>“Better run then.”</p>
<p>Catra playfully hits Adora’s shoulder before turning to leave, and just as she gets to the door, she turns. “Adora?”</p>
<p>“Yeah?”</p>
<p>“You’re it for me too.”</p>
<p>Adora smiles, “I know.”</p>
<p>“See you tonight?”</p>
<p>“See you tonight.”</p>
<p>~*~</p>
<p>Frosta and her advisor finally leave after a trade meeting that went over time by twenty minutes, and Catra’s head hits the table with a loud groan.</p>
<p>“Okay,” C’yra says, closing a folder of revised trade agreements, “You’ve been distracted all day. What is going on?”</p>
<p>“I’m not distracted,” Catra mumbles against the table.</p>
<p>C’yra laughs. “Come on, kitten,” she says, “I watched you and Cassandra spar. You almost let her pin you.”</p>
<p>Catra turns her face out. “I can’t be a perfect warrior every day.”</p>
<p>“Frosta asked you a direct question and she had to repeat herself twice.”</p>
<p>“I rarely listen to what Frosta says.”</p>
<p>“Catra—”</p>
<p>“I’m not distracted! It’s just,” Catra closes her eyes and takes a deep breath, “Adora brought up the binding ceremony this morning.”</p>
<p>“Did she propose?”</p>
<p>“No,” Catra pulls her head off the table, “She just asked me if I’ve ever thought about it.”</p>
<p>C’yra leans back in her chair and asks, “Have you?”</p>
<p>“We both haven’t.”</p>
<p>Catra sees the look of confusion on C’yra’s face.</p>
<p>“The Horde didn’t have any sort of binding or marriage ceremony,” Catra explains, “While relationships weren’t forbidden, it just wasn’t seen as a necessity. Binding didn’t have any benefits for either party, so it wasn’t done.”</p>
<p>“It’s been years since the two of you were there.”</p>
<p>“It’s not like the other stuff,” Catra says, avoiding any discussion of the other habits and thoughts that stuck from the Horde, “It’s just hard for us to see why a formal ceremony is necessary when we’re happy as we are, but apparently this is a normal next step for people who have been dating a significant amount of time and didn’t grow up in the Horde.”</p>
<p>C’yra’s confusion softens into a smile. “Felix and I waited to do our binding ceremony.”</p>
<p>“Why?”</p>
<p>“For one, it’s a bit different marrying into the royal family,” C’yra says, “I didn’t want Felix’s life to change because he gained a role he wasn’t expecting in his life.”</p>
<p>“Right, yes, his role as king must be so difficult for him,” Catra replies in a dry tone, “How long has he spent in the library so far today?”</p>
<p>C’yra laughs, “I believe he’s on hour four.”</p>
<p>“So terrible.”</p>
<p>“It wasn’t Felix who was worried,” C’yra clarifies, “He was more than ready to assume his role. I was the one who didn’t want to thrust being king on him someday.”</p>
<p>“How come?”</p>
<p>“I didn’t want him to resent me,” C’yra looks down at the folder and picks at one of the edges, “I was worried that one day he would realize this wasn’t the role he wanted and I would be to blame.”</p>
<p>“Which never happened.”</p>
<p>C’yra nods. “My point was that you two don’t have to do it just because it’s expected of you.”</p>
<p>“What about my role as princess?” Catra asks, “Don’t I have to have a formal partner eventually?”</p>
<p>“No, kitten,” C’yra leans forward runs a few fingers through Catra’s hair, avoiding the tufts right in front of her ear, “As I understand it, marriage is a bigger deal in Bright Moon than binding is here. You and Adora could go your entire lives without ever being bound and nobody in Half Moon would question it.”</p>
<p>“What about the fact that Adora isn’t a Magicat?”</p>
<p>“Hakim brought that up?”</p>
<p>Catra nods, “He mentioned the law after seeing Adora and me together.”</p>
<p>“You’ve been sitting on that for a while then.”</p>
<p>Catra shrugs.</p>
<p>“You want to know the best part about being queen?”</p>
<p>Catra smirks, “The power you lord over everyone?”</p>
<p>C’yra shoves her gently. “It’s the ability to overturn laws written generations ago by rulers who never stepped foot outside of Half Moon.”</p>
<p>“It can’t be that easy,” Catra says in disbelief.</p>
<p>“I’ll put it before the council tomorrow,” C’yra decides, “I’m more than confident we’ll get a majority vote.”</p>
<p>“I’m so happy your hunger for power works in my favor this time.”</p>
<p>“Keep talking like that and I’ll send Hakim to grab you even earlier tomorrow.”</p>
<p>Catra glares at C’yra, but it does nothing to wipe away C’yra’s smirk. “I’ll get you back for that.”</p>
<p>“I’d love to see you try.”</p>
<p>“I’ll get Dad to help,” Catra says, “And Pisica and Felicity, and I’ll strike when you least expect it.”</p>
<p>“Okay, Catra,” C’yra starts nudging Catra away, “Get out of here before Hakim can rope you into something else.”</p>
<p>“Watch your back.”</p>
<p>“Tell Adora hi for me.”</p>
<p>~*~</p>
<p>Ramiro smiles at Catra as she enters the library, and she gives him a quick wave before making her way to the back corner where she knows she’ll find Felix hunched over a pile of books.</p>
<p>Sure enough, she finds him in his usual spot idly eating from a bowl of fruit and furiously marking down notes. He barely even acknowledges Catra as she sits besides pushing a book her way.</p>
<p>Felix makes one last note before closing his notebook around his pencil. “Using the library to escape your royal responsibilities?”</p>
<p>“I come bearing gifts, actually,” Catra sets the heavy book down on the table, “Adora found it. Apparently, it was found in the Bright Moon libraries, and everyone agreed it should be brought back here.”</p>
<p>“Is that—?” Felix picks up the book like it fragile and inspects the spine, “It can’t be.”</p>
<p>Catra smiles, “It’s Vivek’s histories of Bright Moon and Half Moon as sister cities.”</p>
<p>“This has been lost for a very long time.”</p>
<p>“All it took was Adora getting bored between meetings.”</p>
<p>Felix sets the book down and pulls Catra into a hug. It still feels slightly awkward, but it’s something she’s adjusted to over the years.</p>
<p>Felix likes hugging, just like Scorpia. The least Catra can do is try to return the sentiment.</p>
<p>“Why isn’t Adora here so I can hug her?”</p>
<p>“She went back to Bright Moon after lunch.”</p>
<p>“I’ll see her at dinner though, correct?”</p>
<p>Catra laughs, “I’ll be sure to warn her.”</p>
<p>“What’s her favorite dessert?” Felix asks excitedly, “I’ll make it for her.”</p>
<p>“It’s just a book.”</p>
<p>Felix grabs Catra’s shoulders, and she freezes for just a moment before relaxing.</p>
<p>“This book has been lost for decades, Catra,” Felix says, her eyes and tone almost comically grave, “Adora is a hero.”</p>
<p>Catra snorts, “That’s overdramatic.”</p>
<p>“Think of what we could learn!” Felix grabs the book again and opens it to the front page, “Think about how the relationship between Half Moon and Bright Moon could benefit from this.”</p>
<p>“The relationship between the two cities has been stable and amicable since the Magicats returned.”</p>
<p>“That’s not the point.”</p>
<p>Catra laughs, “She really likes fruity stuff. The last time Bright Moon made fruit tarts for some celebration, I didn’t hear the end of it.”</p>
<p>“Fruity,” Felix says while thumbing through the pages carefully, “I can work with that.”</p>
<p> Catra settles into the quiet sounds of the library, and Felix points to the book he shoved over to her when she arrived. “If you would like to avoid advisors and councils, I think that book would really interest you.”</p>
<p>“What’s it about?” Catra asks, flipping the cover over and reading the author’s acknowledgements.</p>
<p>Catra watches Felix lips quirk up in a barely contained smile. “Binding ceremonies.”</p>
<p>Catra slams the cover shut, “I’ll be adding patricide to my intended matricide.”</p>
<p>Felix starts laughing despite Catra’s empty threat before handing Catra something different.</p>
<p>When Catra refuses to take it, he says, “This is a book on the first generation of Magicats. You were asking about them the other day.”</p>
<p>Catra takes the book and opens to the first chapter discussing the Magicats’ nomadic roots, “You think you’re very funny.”</p>
<p>“I just think C’yra gets all of the fun in picking on you.”</p>
<p>“So you took your chance.”</p>
<p>“I thought it was hilarious.”</p>
<p>Catra rolls her eyes, “I’m sure you did.”</p>
<p>They settle into reading, and Catra is just to the part that describes why a nomadic people finally decided to put down roots when Felix says her name to get her attention.</p>
<p>“Yeah?”</p>
<p>“I just wanted to let you know that I share C’yra’s view,” he says with a soft smile Catra’s come to expect from him in these quieter moments, “Just because you’re the princess doesn’t mean you have to bind yourself to someone, and she doesn’t have to be a Magicat.”</p>
<p>“I figured you would tell me if you had a problem with Adora sometime in the last five years.”</p>
<p>“You know how much we adore her.”</p>
<p>Catra smiles, “I do.”</p>
<p>“I just didn’t want that to go unspoken,” Felix says, “I didn’t want you to think I didn’t support you or your relationship because of outdated expectations or laws.”</p>
<p>“I would never think that of you, Dad.”</p>
<p>And Felix can’t help but smile again, and Catra smiles too.</p>
<p>“Well, good,” Felix says, opening Vivek’s histories again.</p>
<p>Catra breathes out a soft laugh before returning to her own reading.</p>
<p>~*~</p>
<p>Catra wakes up to bright light filtering in through the windows and open balcony doors, and she immediately closes them tight. She cuddles into whatever she’s holding onto, and she realizes it’s a pillow and not her girlfriend.</p>
<p>Adora had to get up early for a meeting of the Queen’s Guard. Catra vaguely remembers Adora giving her a light kiss before leaving the room.</p>
<p>The door opens, and Catra hears Adora’s soft laughter form the doorway.</p>
<p>“You look displeased,” Adora says with a light laugh.</p>
<p>“I hate sleeping here.”</p>
<p>Catra feels the bed dip just so, and then Adora is running her hands over Catra’s back, her nails gently scratching up and down Catra’s spine.</p>
<p>Catra’s purrs are almost instant at the affection.</p>
<p>“You did live here for months when you joined the Alliance.”</p>
<p>Catra opens her eyes just a bit and squints up at Adora. “I didn’t know then that I had a wonderfully dark room waiting for me in Half Moon.”</p>
<p>Adora rolls her eyes, “I still don’t understand how you sleep so well on this bed.”</p>
<p>“I am no longer in the Horde, Adora. I’m not going to sleep on a cot.”</p>
<p>“It’s too—” Catra watches Adora push her hand into the bed, “—squishy.”</p>
<p>“So, ask her Royal Pain in My Ass for something in between.”</p>
<p>“We only sleep here a few nights a month,” Adora says, ignoring Catra’s nickname for Glimmer, “It doesn’t seem worth it.”</p>
<p>“Hey,” Catra grabs Adora’s hand and interlocks their fingers, “If you’re not comfortable, we can go back to the cot.”</p>
<p>Adora brings Catra’s hand up to her lips and kisses along Catra’s knuckles. “I’m more comfortable in this bed than you are on the cot.”</p>
<p>“Are you sure?” Catra pulls Adora’s hand gently to try and get her to join Catra on the bed. The warm morning with the sun seeping into her fur and with significantly less to do than at home has Catra wanting to spend all day together in bed.</p>
<p>“I’m sure,” Adora lets Catra pull her down, kicking her boots off before hugging Catra to her chest, “As long as I have you, I sleep just fine.”</p>
<p>Catra slips her hands under Adora’s shirt and presses a soft kiss to Adora’s throat.</p>
<p>“How was your meeting?”</p>
<p>“Boring,” Adora presses a kiss to Catra’s forehead and starts running her fingers through Catra’s hair, “It seems like every meeting is boring nowadays.”</p>
<p>“So, you, Bow, and Glimmer spent the entire time passing notes and not listening.”</p>
<p>Adora laughs softly, “Angella caught us too.”</p>
<p>“Seriously?” Catra moves away enough to look up at Adora, and Adora is smiling.</p>
<p>“We got lectured,” she says with a smile, “We haven’t gotten lectured since the war.”</p>
<p>Catra smirks, “Who started passing the notes?”</p>
<p>She expects it to be Glimmer, but Adora’s cheeks go slightly rosy, and Catra laughs.</p>
<p>“It started with my doodles!” Adora tries to defend herself, “And then Bow was adding things on, and Glimmer noticed and started to do the same, and before we knew it, we had notes and doodles and were being reprimanded in front of every important official in Bright Moon.”</p>
<p>“How embarrassing,” Catra says through squeaky giggles, “I wish I could’ve been there.”</p>
<p>“If you really want, I’ll do the same thing at our Princess Alliance meeting tomorrow morning.”</p>
<p>“It’s not funny if it’s planned.”</p>
<p>Adora glares at her, “That does not mean you’re going to do anything to get us in trouble.”</p>
<p>“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Catra lies, already thinking through a few ways to distract Adora, “I’m completely innocent.”</p>
<p>“I’m not getting lectured two days in a row.”</p>
<p>Catra snorts, “We’re adults, Adora.”</p>
<p>“You’re not going to do anything, Catra.”</p>
<p>“I’m not going to do anything,” Catra fights a smile, “I definitely will not do anything at all that will result in a lecture from Angella.”</p>
<p>Adora sighs and resigns herself to whatever she knows Catra is planning. She loves the little mischievous sparkle she can see in Catra’s mismatched eyes, though. It reminds her of playing pranks in the Fright Zone, Catra coming up with all of their plans and Adora helping her to enact them to torture their squad.</p>
<p>She remembers one prank that left Lonnie covered in green goo, and Catra laughed so hard her laughter turned squeaky in the way Adora loves.</p>
<p>“I love you, Catra,” Adora runs her thumb over Catra’s bottom lip.</p>
<p>It’s not something they say a lot. It’s something they didn’t necessarily know the right words for for a very long time, and they prefer showing rather than telling, but Adora can’t help herself.</p>
<p>Catra looks so cute and warm snuggled against her, and she’s so happy in this moment that the words spill out.</p>
<p>“I love you too, Adora,” Catra responds easily before leaning forward for a soft kiss. Her nails run gently over Adora’s back, and Adora’s fingers card through Catra long, tangled hair, and they take their time. The kiss is slow and sweet, because there’s no reason to rush.</p>
<p>For once, there’s no impending doom. There’s no great armies to defeat or an entire planet to heal and rebuild.</p>
<p>There’s just the two of them, soft and warm against each other, and Catra thinks about missing the Princess Alliance meeting, thinks about holing up in here with Adora for days just kissing and being together.</p>
<p>Adora kisses her one last time before pulling back, a smirk on her lips.</p>
<p>“Glimmer’s going to bring up marriage when she sees you,” Adora says, biting her lip to stop a grin, “Apparently she feels like she needs to get this from all angles.”</p>
<p>Catra groans, her forehead thumping onto Adora’s sternum. “Why is she still on that?”</p>
<p>“It’s Bright Moon tradition,” Adora says, rolling into her back.</p>
<p>Adora smiles as Catra moves so that she’s lying completely on top of Adora, nuzzling into Adora’s neck and running her nails up and down Adora’s sides.</p>
<p>“To pester your friends?” Catra asks, rolling her eyes.</p>
<p>“To get married,” Adora answers, even though she knows Catra’s question was rhetorical.</p>
<p>“Neither of us are from Bright Moon,” Catra complains, her voice muffled against Adora's throat “Shouldn’t that stop her from bringing it up?”</p>
<p>“Well, technically, I kind of am,” Adora’s hand slips under Catra’s shirt to rest at the small of her back, “It’s not like She-Ra has her own kingdom.”</p>
<p>“You’re not even from this planet,” Catra huffs out, “I think that means that we can do whatever we want, and Princess Sparkles is going to have to deal with it whether she likes it or not.”</p>
<p>“Well, maybe Glimmer will listen to you.”</p>
<p>Catra hums a response, far more comfortable than she was when she woke up, but even as she starts to drift off, a small insecurity nags at her, poking and prodding, and there’s this small whisper, a quiet voice that says, <em>Adora deserves better than someone that won’t even bind themselves to her</em>, that cuts through the warmth and comfort.</p>
<p>She knows that they talked about it, but maybe one quick conversation while they got ready in the morning wasn’t enough. Maybe Adora’s opinion has changed since then. Maybe—</p>
<p>“Catra?”</p>
<p>Adora’s voice cuts off the intrusive thoughts, one hand coming up to bury itself in Catra’s long mane.</p>
<p>Some of the tension leaves her body, and it takes Catra a moment to realize her hands are fisted into Adora’s shirt, her nails close to ripping through the fabric.</p>
<p>“Hey,” Adora’s voice is so soft and gentle, “What is it?”</p>
<p>“Are you sure?” Catra asks without moving her face from the crook of Adora’s neck.</p>
<p>“Am I sure about what?”</p>
<p>Catra sighs. “That you don’t want to get married.”</p>
<p>Adora’s hand moves from her hair to her cheek, and Catra doesn’t resist when Adora gently moves her so that Catra is looking down into bright blue eyes and hair illuminated by the late morning glow.</p>
<p>Adora’s thumb runs across Catra’s cheek, and Catra leans into the contact. “I know it was a quick conversation, but I meant what I said,” Adora whispers, her lips pulling up into a small smile, “I’m happy where we are now. I love you. I don’t need anything formal like a Bright Moon wedding or a Magicats bonding ceremony to make that official.”</p>
<p>“I just thought—” Catra trails off, looking away, because now that Adora has assured her, she feels like she overreacted.</p>
<p>“Are you happy, Catra?”</p>
<p>Catra’s eyes widen, her ears twitching just so, and she looks down at Adora again.</p>
<p>Her Adora, who never gave up on her, even when she gave up on herself.</p>
<p>Her Adora, that fought for her and came to Beast Island without a second thought.</p>
<p>Just, <em>her</em> Adora.</p>
<p>“Of course I’m happy,” Catra says honestly, bringing her forehead down to Adora’s.</p>
<p>“And I am too,” Adora says softly, “If we’re already happy, why don’t we stay where we are?”</p>
<p>Catra smiles, “I’d like that.”</p>
<p>“It’s settled then,” Catra opens her eyes to see Adora smiling, open and bright and so her, “And I can tell Glimmer to back off on the marriage talk.”</p>
<p>“I would also really like that,” Catra says, sinking back down into Adora and getting comfortable.</p>
<p>“I’ll ask for Bow’s help.” Adora’s hands slip back under Catra’s shirt and run over her back.</p>
<p>Catra hums and smiles against Adora’s throat.</p>
<p>Adora talks about this and that, small stories of her and Bow and Glimmer, little moments that Catra misses while Catra’s busy in Half Moon, and she listens to every word, giving a small acknowledgement every now and then to let Adora know that she’s still awake, still listening, still interested.</p>
<p>At one point, Catra drifts off without realizing it, and she wakes up to Adora pressing kisses against her cheeks and nose and lips, softly waking her up so that they can get something to eat, and even when Catra bats her away with a groan, she opens her eyes to Adora smiling at her like she’s the only thing in the universe.</p>
<p>It’s a smile Catra loves and has loved since they were kids whispering in the middle of the night in the barracks, pausing at every small noise and rushing under the covers when the patrols came through to make sure everyone was asleep.</p>
<p>It’s the smile Catra loved even when she hated Adora, fighting against her on opposite sides of a war they ended together.</p>
<p>It’s the smile Catra sees every morning when she wakes up to soft kisses and Adora’s arm pulling Catra even closer to her.</p>
<p>Catra smiles back, warm and happy and content, because she wasn’t lying when Adora asked her if she’s happy.</p>
<p>Every morning she wakes up to Adora, every moment they share together, every spar with quips thrown and every meal they share with Catra’s parents or lunches spent with the Best Friend Squad makes her happier than she ever believed she could be.</p>
<p>Catra wishes she could go back in time and talk to that scared little girl bundled up in Horde-issued blankets crying on the bottom bunk. She wishes she could give her one more promise, a promise that she will make it through. She’ll grow to be stronger and kinder, and she’ll finally learn that love is not always conditional. She’ll find people who love and understand her, and even though she pushes them away at first, they’ll fight for her because they’ll think she’s worth fighting for.</p>
<p>And she wishes that she could tell that girl who loved Adora with all of the feelings she never understood that one day, Adora would love her back. They’ll kiss in the woods of Beast Island and it’ll be like puzzles pieces finally fitting together to make something beautiful and unique and <em>theirs</em>.</p>
<p><em>You'll be happy</em>, Catra wishes she could tell her younger self, <em>You'll finally be happy.</em></p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0002"><h2>2. Something Like Happily Ever After</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Word reaches the Princess Alliance quickly, but not quick enough.</p><p>Previous Horde soldiers, the ones who refused rehabilitation and evaded Mystacor’s trials, attacked a village deep in the Meadowlands. They were quick, and they left the Horde’s symbol painted on burning buildings and in the town square.</p><p>By the time the Alliance arrived, the soldiers were already gone.</p>
          </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Me? Finishing a fic? It's more likely than you think.</p><p>Guys, this is the first thing I've finished in a while, and it felt nice. Honestly, I could keep going forever on this, and there were more scenes I could've included, but I think I need to stop it here and save the rest for later.</p><p>Enjoy!</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Word reaches the Princess Alliance quickly, but not quick enough.</p><p>Previous Horde soldiers, the ones who refused rehabilitation and evaded Mystacor’s trials, attacked a village deep in the Meadowlands. They were quick, and they left the Horde’s symbol painted on burning buildings and in the town square.</p><p>By the time the Alliance arrived, the soldiers were already gone.</p><p>Catra stands on the outskirts of the village, and she wants to move forward, to help the rest of the Alliance, but she’s stuck to the spot. She tries not to see Thaymor, tries not to hear the screams of civilians, tries not to remember every awful thing she did before getting sent to Beast Island, but everything comes crashing down on her and she’s frozen.</p><p>“Hey,” Adora says softly, coming up next to her but keeping her space, “I know this is hard—”</p><p>“You think?” Catra hisses, anger coming out to cover the sadness and fear that she’s trying to push down, “Adora, I thought this was over.”</p><p>“We all did,” Catra watches Adora reach out and then decide not to, “Bow and Glimmer are looking around the village to see if they can find them. They can’t have gone far, based on—”</p><p>Adora trails off, but Catra knows what Adora’s going to say.</p><p>
  <em>Based on the fact that the fires are still going. Based on the freshness of the bodies found.</em>
</p><p>“Any survivors?”</p><p>Adora looks down and away. “None yet.”</p><p>“Catra!”</p><p>It’s Scorpia, and she sounds like she’s deep in the village.</p><p>Catra runs without thinking, the idea that Scorpia might be hurt, that one of the soldiers stuck around, waiting for his chance to take out someone in the Princess Alliance playing itself on repeat.</p><p>When she gets to Scorpia, there’s no fight. Scorpia is completely okay, squatting in front of something.</p><p>There’s a bit of movement, and Catra realizes it’s not something, it’s someone.</p><p>Before Catra calls out to the rest of the Alliance, she sees a soft, feline tail wrap around the figure and ears twitching in a short mane.</p><p>“She’s a Magicat,” Catra whispers, “How did a Magicat, let alone a Magicat child, make it all the way out to the Meadowlands?”</p><p>“I don’t know,” Scorpia says, trying to move closer, but the little Magicat cowers further against the wall, “I tried talking to her, but she’s so scared, and I think I’m not helping.”</p><p>Catra looks around them and realizes that besides Adora, who ran after Catra when Scorpia called, the rest of the Alliance is still trying to find survivors or find the soldiers.</p><p>“Let me try,” Catra suggests, putting a hand on Scorpia’s shoulder, “Go wait over there with Adora.”</p><p>Scorpia nods and smiles, “You got it, Wildcat.”</p><p>Then it’s just Catra and the kitten by themselves.</p><p>Catra sits, making sure to keep a few feet away. “Hi,” she says, her voice soft, “I’m Princess Catra.”</p><p>The kitten peeks up over her arms and tail, and Catra smiles.</p><p>“The woman over here before was Scorpia,” Catra continues, hoping that the more she talks, the more the Magicat will warm up to her, “She may seem big and scary, but she’s actually the nicest person I know. She’ll tell you she gives the best hugs, and it’s true, but you can’t tell anyone I admitted that.”</p><p>The kitten looks around Catra to Adora and Scorpia standing a few feet away then furtively around the entire village. “Are you with them?” the kitten asks, looking at Catra with so much fear.</p><p>“We’re not,” Catra promises, “You see the blonde woman over there?” She points to Adora. “That’s She-Ra. We’re here to help.”</p><p>“Everything is already gone.”</p><p>Those words hit Catra like a cannon, and she fights down the sadness and anger and reality that she did this to villages one upon a time.</p><p><em>I’m not that person</em>, Catra thinks, <em>Not anymore.</em> She chants that over and over and over again until regret and self-hatred stop bubbling up.</p><p>“You’re still here,” Catra says.</p><p>“I hid,” the kitten admits, and she slowly unfurls herself.</p><p>“You must be very good at hiding.”</p><p>“Daddy says I’m the best,” the kitten whispers, “He can never find me when we play Hide-n-Seek.”</p><p>Catra stands and offers the kitten her hand, but the kitten flinches away.</p><p>“I’m not going to hurt you,” Catra tells her softly, “You’re safe with me.”</p><p>The kitten looks up at Catra with wide, scared eyes, and Catra hopes her smile is reassuring.</p><p>“You promise?” the kitten asks, and Catra sees herself, alone and afraid and asking Adora the same thing.</p><p>“I promise.”</p><p>Catra reaches out her hand again, and this time the kitten takes it, crawling into Catra’s arms.</p><p>“Can you tell me your name?” Catra whispers, holding her close.</p><p>“Danai,” the kitten whispers, tears starting to fall from her eyes.</p><p>“Alright, Danai,” Catra starts walking over to Adora and Scorpia, “Let’s get you out of here, okay?”</p><p>~*~</p><p>Catra is still holding Danai when she returns to Half Moon, the small Magicat refusing to leave her arms. Even when Adora offers to take her, Danai’s grip only tightens, and Catra assures Adora that she’s alright.</p><p>“I need to get C’yra,” Catra whispers as they walk up the castle steps, a sound-asleep Danai on her hip, “She’ll want to know that there might be Magicats out there that we don’t know about.”</p><p>“Wouldn’t they have returned?” Adora asks, keeping a hand on Catra’s back to keep her steady, “It seems strange that they wouldn’t after you took Half Moon back.”</p><p>“Maybe they didn’t want to,” Catra suggests, her tail wrapping loosely around Adora’s wrist as Adora holds the palace door’s open for her, “Maybe they were afraid after the invasion.”</p><p>C’yra’s standing in front of the doors to the throne room, Felix right behind her, and they rush over to Catra and Adora as they come in.</p><p>“The village?” Felix asks, looking to Adora for an answer.</p><p>“Completely destroyed,” Adora whispers, “No survivors besides her.” She points to Danai in Catra’s arms.</p><p>“And the people who did it?” C’yra asks.</p><p>“Found about a mile away at an encampment,” Catra answers, “They’re on their way to Mystacor now to stand trial.”</p><p>Felix brushes a few stray pieces of hair from Danai’s face. “She’s a Magicat,” he whispers to C’yra, “Didn’t we call for all Magicats to return to Half Moon before the invasion?”</p><p>“Just because we sent out the call doesn’t mean that everyone returned,” C’yra says, “I don’t know how they avoided the Horde’s forces, though.”</p><p>“This village was deep in the Meadowlands,” Catra says, adjusting Danai a bit as she starts to slip, “I don’t think Hordak ever bothered invading the Meadowlands.”</p><p>“He didn’t find any use for it,” Adora adds on, “Barely anyone lives out there, and there’s not a princess or a runestone anywhere nearby.”</p><p>C’yra and Felix both nod, and when Felix tries taking Danai from Catra, Danai grips into Catra’s hair and shoulders.</p><p>“She hasn’t let go of me since we found her,” Catra explains, “I don’t think she feels safe anywhere else.”</p><p>“You need sleep, kitten,” C’yra says, “You look exhausted.”</p><p>“Why don’t we bring a cot into our room?” Adora suggests, running a few fingers through Catra’s hair, “You can put her down and promise her that we’re just a few feet away.”</p><p>Catra smiles and nods, “That’s not a bad idea.”</p><p>“We’ll go grab one and bring it to your room,” Felix says, and then he and C’yra go off into the palace while Adora and Catra slowly make their way further into the castle.</p><p>“How are you feeling?” Adora asks, her hand going back to rest against the small of Catra’s back.</p><p>“My back hurts,” Catra complains, “I’m not strong enough to carry around a small child all day.”</p><p>Adora laughs softly, “At the very least, we’re almost to our bed.”</p><p>Catra groans, “But we’re not there right now.”</p><p>Adora pushes open the door to their room, and Catra practically runs inside and sits down, a sigh pushing past her lips as she lays back. Danai moves so that her face isn’t buried in the bed, and she snuggles just a bit into Catra.</p><p>“Do you think she latched onto you because you’re a Magicat?” Adora asks, sitting on the bed and letting Catra rest her head in Adora’s lap.</p><p>“I don’t know,” Catra says, closing her eyes as Adora starts running her fingers through Catra’s hair, “I expected her to say something about how I was like her, but I think everything was just too overwhelming and scary at the time.”</p><p>Adora hums, and her hands move down to Catra’s shoulders, her thumbs pressing into Catra muscles, and Catra holds in a groan at how good it feels.</p><p>They’re silent until C’yra and Felix knock on their door. Adora opens it to see C’yra holding a folded-up cot and Felix holding what Catra can only assume is every spare blanket and pillow in the whole castle.</p><p>Catra pushes herself up and rolls her eyes at her father. “Where did you even find all of those?”</p><p>“He checked every linen closet in the palace,” C’yra says while unfolding the cot.</p><p>“I just wanted her to be comfortable,” Felix starts placing pillows and unfolding blankets, “After the day she’s had, it’s the least I can do.”</p><p>“That’s very thoughtful,” Adora says, a sweet comparison to C’yra and Catra’s sarcasm.</p><p>Catra stands up and tries detaching Danai from her, but Danai whimpers and digs her claws in.</p><p>“Hey,” Catra whispers to her, ignoring the biting pain coming from Danai’s nails, “I’m just putting you down so we can get you into bed, okay?”</p><p>Danai wakes up, and her eyes are wide as she surveys the room. “Where am I?” she asks, tears welling up in her eyes.</p><p>Catra kneels down and Danai sets her feet on the ground but Catra doesn’t pull away.</p><p>“We’re in Half Moon,” Catra explains, “This is my home.” Catra points to Adora, and Adora smiles warmly, “You remember She-Ra, right?” Danai nods just so. “When she’s not She-Ra, her name is Adora, and she lives here with me too.”</p><p>Danai looks past Adora and sees C’yra and Felix standing behind her. “Who are they?” she asks, moving closer to Catra to feel some sort of safety and security.</p><p>“Those are my parents,” Catra says softly, smiling as she pushes a piece of Danai’s mane from her face, “That’s Queen C’yra and King Felix.”</p><p>Both smile, and Felix waves.</p><p>“They look like me,” Danai says, “And so do you.”</p><p>Catra nods. “We’re Magicats, just like you.”</p><p>“Nobody besides Mommy and Daddy look like me,” Danai says.</p><p>“Half Moon is full of people who look just like you,” Catra wipes a few stray tears from Danai’s short, coarse fur, “And C’yra and Felix are queen and king of the Magicats.”</p><p>“And you’re the princess,” Danai remembers, her grip on Catra letting up.</p><p>Catra smiles, “That’s right, kitten. I am. Now, come on,” Catra pulls back one of the blankets Felix put on the cot, “Let’s get some sleep, okay?”</p><p>Danai’s eyes go wide and she hesitates, but Catra grabs her face gently, her thumbs brushing away more tears as they fall.</p><p>“You’re safe,” Catra promises, “We’re somewhere safe, and I’m just a few feet away, okay?”</p><p>Danai nods.</p><p>“Okay,” Catra whispers, letting Danai go to push back the blanket again.</p><p>Danai gets into the cot, and Catra pulls the blankets up to her chin and tucks her in.</p><p>“Remember,” Catra says, “I’m just right over there if you need me.”</p><p>Danai nods again, and her eyes start to close, the stress and fear finally catching up to her and making her tired.</p><p>Catra runs her fingers through Danai’s hair before standing up, her muscles protesting.</p><p>“You two get some sleep too,” C’yra says, and it comes off like a command, “We’ll see you in the morning.”</p><p>“Night, Mom,” Catra says, already collapsing into her bed, “Night, Dad.”</p><p>“Night, love,” Felix says, and he closes the door as quietly as he can behind himself and C’yra.</p><p>Adora kicks off her boots and climbs into bed too, and Catra immediately snuggles into Adora’s waiting arms.</p><p>“It’s been a long day,” Catra says, her eyes closing as Adora starts rubbing up and down her back.</p><p>“That an understatement,” Adora presses a kiss to the tip of Catra’s nose, “How are you?”</p><p>“You already asked that,” Catra says, biting back a groan when Adora finds a knot and presses in.</p><p>“Well, you already complained about your back,” Adora’s fingers find another tight spot and work it out, “But I was referring to what happened back at the village.”</p><p>“Can’t we talk about this tomorrow?” Catra groans, burying her face in Adora’s neck.</p><p>“I would say yes if I thought you actually would.”</p><p>Catra pushes up off the bed, her back protesting. “I can’t be the only one who saw that village and had a bad reaction. I’m just the only one who froze.” Despite being quiet, her words are harsh, and she closes her eyes for just a moment and takes a few deep breaths to calm herself down. “It’s just,” Catra opens her eyes to see Adora looking up at her with such open caring that it’s almost overwhelming, “It’s been years since anything like this has happened.”</p><p>“Why did you freeze?”</p><p>The question is gentle, and one of Adora’s hands slides up Catra’s back and around her shoulder to cup Catra’s face.</p><p>“Because all I could see was Thaymor,” Catra looks away, refusing to meet Adora’s eyes, “All I could think about were all of the villages that I helped destroy.”</p><p>“You’re not that person anymore, Catra.”</p><p>“That doesn’t mean I can just forget that I was,” Catra retorts, “These past few years don’t make up for all of the awful things that I did, all of the things I probably would’ve kept doing if Hordak never sent me to Beast Island.”</p><p>Adora doesn’t say anything at first. She uses a finger under Catra’s chin to bring Catra’s eyes back to her own. Blue eyes meet mismatched, and Adora smiles softly.</p><p>“I’m not telling you to forget,” Adora says, her thumb coming up to run along Catra’s ear, “We can’t change the past, but you’re not that person anymore. I don’t know what you would’ve become if Hordak never sent you to Beast Island, but we can’t get caught up in What Ifs. I know who you are now, and that’s what’s most important.”</p><p>“And who am I now?”</p><p>Adora breathes out the softest laugh, her hand moving from Catra’s ear to tug playfully at the hair right behind it. “Now you’re fishing.”</p><p>Catra smiles, “I think I deserve the compliments.”</p><p>“How about I save those for the morning?” Adora suggests with an eye roll, “I’m so tired I may fall asleep mid-paragraph.”</p><p>Catra lies back down on top of Adora. “I guess I do want my compliments to be delivered without pause.”</p><p>She feels Adora’s smile against her temple. “Goodnight, Catra.”</p><p>“Night,” Catra mumbles out against Adora’s neck.</p><p>~*~</p><p>
  <em>Catra and Adora are back at She-Ra’s temple, Adora barely hanging onto the cliff by some of the green webbing, Catra holding the Sword of Protection.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Adora’s asking, begging, for Catra’s help, but Catra just runs her finger along the bright blue blade.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>“This thing wouldn’t work for me if I tried, would it?” Catra asks, going on and on about Shadow Weaver and being second best. “Every hero needs a sidekick, right?” she ends, crouching down to be able to see Adora better.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>The Sword of Protection glides through the green webbing like butter, and Adora falls, just barely catching herself, before Catra throws the sword down into the abyss threatening to swallow Adora whole.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>“Bye, Adora,” she says, her voice devoid of any kind of emotion, “I really am going to miss you.”</em>
</p><p>
  <em>She leaves to Adora calling her name and begging her to come back, but she doesn’t care.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>She’s finally defeated Adora. She’s finally won. Adora is—</em>
</p><p>Catra sits up, her breathing heavy and tears burning the back of her eyes.</p><p>She wants to run. She wants to leave the room and go find the tallest tree she can, because she starts feeling trapped inside her room, but just as she’s about to get out of bed, small, bright eyes look up at her from the cot.</p><p>“You should be asleep,” Catra says softly, trying hard not to sound harsh as her breathing starts to calm down.</p><p>“I had a nightmare,” Danai’s voice is small and soft and scared.</p><p>“Yeah?”</p><p>Danai nods.</p><p>“Me too,” Catra admits.</p><p>“What was yours about?” Danai asks, clutching the blanket up under her chin.</p><p>“Something bad I did a very long time ago,” Catra answers, pushing her hair up and away from her face, grabbing for a hair tie on her bedside table to keep it up.</p><p>“How do you make it better?”</p><p>Catra stands up and offers her hand to Danai, and she scrambles out of bed to take it.</p><p>“I’ll show you.”</p><p>When they get to the door, Catra feels a tug and turns to see Danai stopped.</p><p>“What about Adora?” Danai asks.</p><p>Catra smiles, “She’ll know where to find us. I promise.”</p><p>Danai glances back at Adora before turning around and letting Catra lead her out of the room.</p><p>The halls of the palace are quiet, and Catra picks Danai up as they walk out into the empty square.</p><p>Danai looks around at everything, alert eyes taking in everything she can. Her fingers dig into Catra’s shoulder as she reads the signs over every stall, and Catra wonders if she’ll start asking questions, but Danai stays silent, and Catra can see her tail flicking nervously.</p><p>They leave the city, and when they get out to the Whispering Woods, Danai hides her face against Catra’s neck, her body as close to Catra’s body as physically possible.</p><p>They reach the base of the tree that Catra loves, the one with thick branches that reach higher than the rest, and Catra tries coaxing Danai to let go.</p><p>Danai looks up the tree, and before she can curl back into Catra, Catra says, “I won’t let you fall.”</p><p>“You promise?” Danai asks, her voice small, and Catra smiles.</p><p>“I promise,” Catra says, and she helps Danai to climb the first few branches. She makes sure to stay just under Danai as they climb so she can catch her if Danai makes any wrong steps, but Danai’s steps are sure, her little claws digging into the bark to pull herself up.</p><p>Catra reaches her favorite branch, thick enough to bear her weight and high enough that she can see Etheria’s moons lighting up the treetops. Once Catra settles herself with her back against the trunk, Danai climbs into her lap and looks up.</p><p>“This is nice,” Danai whispers, playing with Catra’s fingers absentmindedly.</p><p>“Is it helping?” Catra asks, setting her chin on Danai’s head and watching the leaves shift in the breeze.</p><p>Danai nods, and her ears twitch at the small sounds of the woods, but her eyes never leave the sky. It’s the calmest and most childlike that Catra has seen her act all day.</p><p>“Do you want to talk about your nightmare?”</p><p>Danai freezes, her nails digging into Catra’s skin.</p><p>Catra bites her tongue to deal with the sting of sharp nails, and she acts like nothing has changed.</p><p>“I never really like talking about it either,” Catra says, hoping the words will help the anxiety subside, “Adora and I are really bad about it, actually. I like to come here, and Adora likes to train, but we have really good friends who are there for us whenever we want to talk.”</p><p>The stinging of nails in Catra’s skin goes away.</p><p>“You don’t talk to each other?”</p><p>Catra breathes out a laugh. “We didn’t used to, but we got better at it.”</p><p>Tiny fingers go back to playing with Catra’s own. “It’s quiet here.”</p><p>“Only animals and bugs live in the Whispering Woods,” Catra says, her ears twitching to the rustling of leaves a few feet away, “Was your village loud?”</p><p>“It was noisy, but it wasn’t bad.” Danai’s voice is soft and small, and Catra wonders if she’s remembering her village and what happened to it today.</p><p>Without actively realizing it, Catra holds onto her tighter.</p><p>“Do you like the quiet here?”</p><p>Danai nods sleepily, and Catra can feel her starting to fall asleep in her arms. Every time Danai’s chin dipped down, though, she startled herself back awake, and Catra knows why she doesn’t want to sleep.</p><p>If she sleeps, she dreams, and Danai’s nightmare tonight probably wasn’t the last after what she went through.</p><p>“Hey,” Catra says softly, “You’re safe here. I won’t let anything happen to you.”</p><p>“I don’t want to see it again,” Danai whimpers.</p><p>“I know, kitten,” Catra moves Danai so that she’s more comfortable, “I can’t promise you won’t have another nightmare, but I will be right here when you wake up.”</p><p>Sleep seems to be winning over Danai’s fear and she falls asleep against Catra among the treetops of the Whispering Woods.</p><p>Adora finds them right as the sun peaks over the horizon, Etheria’s sky the pale purple and blue of morning. Adora looks up from the base of the tree, and Catra looks down at her and smiles, her fingers running through Danai’s tangled hair.</p><p>~*~</p><p>Catra is sure she’s going to murder Hakim. She probably would’ve already done it if C’yra, Felix, and Adora weren’t in the room, but her mother and girlfriend flank her on either side, Adora’s hand resting right above her knee.</p><p>“She’s not just some child who lost her parents,” Catra says, each word sounding more and more like a growl, “She witnessed the slaughter of her entire village, her parents included, and she’s the only one who survived. She’s barely comfortable being here, let alone living with someone completely new and strange.”</p><p>“It’s not that simple, Princess Catra,” Hakim says, his voice annoyingly formal and emotionless, “There’s custom to think about, and you’re already breaking the tradition by engaging in a relationship with Adora and foregoing the bonding ceremony.”</p><p>Catra goes to get up so that she can swipe at him, but C’yra puts a hand on her shoulder.</p><p>“Hakim, this is not the time to discuss custom, especially laws overturned by the council years ago,” C’yra says calmly, “There’s a young girl who’s traumatized, and the only person she feels safe around is Catra, so there’s no question about whether or not she’ll be staying at the palace.”</p><p>“Maybe her Highness should consider adoption,” Hakim suggests, “That would solve this problem.” He says it casually, like it isn’t something that would completely change Catra and Adora’s life.</p><p>Adora grabs Catra’s hand and squeezes, and it’s like Adora can read her mind and sense how overwhelmed Hakim’s suggestion makes her feel.</p><p>C’yra looks over at the two of them, and Catra can feel Felix’s gaze on her from his spot behind them.</p><p>“Maybe we should give Adora and Catra a moment,” Felix suggests, already going over to the door and opening it.</p><p>It looks like Hakim wants to argue, but C’yra stands and motions him out of her office, leaving Catra and Adora all alone.</p><p>Adora turns in her seat to face Catra, and her hands immediately come up to cup Catra’s face.</p><p>“I—” Catra’s hands come up to wrap around Adora’s wrists, “I don’t—how are we supposed to make that decision right now?”</p><p>“It is a little sudden.”</p><p>“A little?!”</p><p>“Okay, so a bit more than a little,” Adora starts running her thumbs over Catra’s cheeks.</p><p>“She’s only been here a few weeks. This is the first time since we brought her back to Half Moon that she felt safe enough that we could leave her with Felicity.”</p><p>“I know.”</p><p>“Do you even want a kid?”</p><p>“It’s not something I’ve ever really thought about.”</p><p>Catra sighs. “Neither have I. Honestly, I thought I would never feel comfortable enough to have one.”</p><p>“Do you feel comfortable now?”</p><p>“Do you?” Catra snaps, her nails digging into her thighs.</p><p>“Hey,” Adora grabs Catra’s hand, the other still against her cheek, “I know this is a lot to decide right now.”</p><p>“I just—” Catra closes her eyes and tries to focus, “What if I’m awful? I was around Shadow Weaver for eighteen years. What if I end up like her?”</p><p>“You won’t,” Adora insists, “And I won’t either. We are not Shadow Weaver, Catra.”</p><p>“How are you so sure?” Catra opens her eyes and brings a hand up to Adora’s back, her fingers tracing over scars she left behind, “I did so many awful things, and I was like her for so long.”</p><p>Adora brings Catra hand up to her mouth, lips brushing against the inside of Catra’s wrist. “I’m sure because you realized that what you did was wrong. Even in her last moments, Shadow Weaver believed everything she did, everything she did to <em>us</em>, was right.”</p><p>Catra can almost hear whispers of the things Shadow Weaver told her in Bright Moon’s prison, the soft, manipulative assurances that the Princess Alliance would get rid of her as soon as she fulfilled her purpose to them.</p><p>Now, so many years removed, she knows Shadow Weaver never cared about her. If Shadow Weaver even knew how to care about another person, that person was Adora, and Shadow Weavers’ caring wasn’t anything like C’yra or Angella. It had strings and expectations that were impossible to fill.</p><p>“She’s already gone through so much,” Catra says softly, “I don’t want her to go through anything else.”</p><p>“She’s safe here,” Adora promises, “Even if we don’t adopt her, she’s not going anywhere. She’ll be right here with us.”</p><p>“What do you think?”</p><p>“I think we should.”</p><p>“Really?”</p><p>“Yeah,” Adora smiles, “She’s already grown close to you, and she seems to be comfortable around me, and even though having a kid is scary, I think I’m ready if you are.”</p><p>“How are you so calm about this?”</p><p>“I don’t know,” Adora shrugs, “I guess I just thought about that fact that Half Moon got invaded, and they took you and raised you, and a portal pulled me through to Etheria, and in those circumstances, we were at the will of whoever found us. Of all of the people who could’ve found Danai, it was us, and I figured we’d be better parents than the people who raised us.”</p><p>“So, your logic is that we would be better than a bunch of commanding officers and an abusive sorceress who viewed you as nothing more than a means to an end and me as your annoying pet that she only kept around because of you.”</p><p>“When you say it like that, it sounds ridiculous.”</p><p>Catra laughs, some of the tension and stress leaving her body. “It is a little ridiculous.”</p><p>“Am I wrong?”</p><p>“No,” Catra smiles, her hand squeezing Adora’s, “You’re not.”</p><p>“So,” Adora leans forward and kisses Catra softly, “Do you think we should?”</p><p>Catra thinks it over, and even though this is never something she thought she would want or something she was never really sure she could have, she can’t deny that finding a new home for Danai among the Magicats makes something uneasy grow in her. She knows her people, and she knows Danai would be safe and loved, but Danai has been with them for the past few weeks. She’s slept in their room and come to Catra when she’s had a nightmare, and Catra isn’t sure she wants Danai to be anywhere but with them.</p><p>“Well, when you give me an argument that good, I don’t think I can say no.”</p><p>~*~</p><p>Danai cracks the door open and looks in.</p><p>It’s the first night she’s in her own room, the first night she’s more than a few feet away from Catra and Adora, and she’s nervous.</p><p>She had a nightmare, the same nightmare she keeps having since her village was attacked, and climbing into Catra and Adora’s bed was easy when she was in the same room, but now that’s she’s right next door, she isn’t sure she’s allowed to anymore.</p><p>She sees shifting from the bed, and Adora pushes herself up a bit, an easy smile on her lips.</p><p>“You can come in,” Adora says softly, getting up so that she can grab Danai from the doorway.</p><p>Danai lets Adora pick her up and cuddle her close, and she snuggles in closer as Adora nudges the door closed and brings her to the bed.</p><p>Adora lays down, and she lets Danai stay where she is, her arms coming around to hug Danai close.</p><p>“I’m sorry,” Danai murmurs, her face pushed into the crook of Adora’s neck, and even though this isn’t the first time Adora has let her cuddle like this, she still thinks about how weird it is to cuddle into someone and just find skin.</p><p>“Why are you sorry?”</p><p>“I didn’t know if I was allowed to come in here.”</p><p>“How come?”</p><p>“Because I’m in the other room now.”</p><p>Adora squeezes her just a little bit tighter, and it reminds Danai of her daddy’s hugs.</p><p>“You’re always allowed in here,” Adora promises.</p><p>Danai closes her eyes again, and she feels the bed shift a bit, the blankets rustling, before there’s a comforting hand running up and down her back.</p><p>“Hey kitten,” Catra says, her voice rough and soft, “I didn’t hear you come in.”</p><p>Danai shift just enough so that she can turn her head and face Catra. “Adora said I could come in.”</p><p>Catra smiles, “Of course you can. Did you have a nightmare again?”</p><p>Danai nods.</p><p>“Anything we can do to help?” Adora asks.</p><p>“Don’t leave,” Danai says, her eyes starting to close, and she isn’t sure Adora and Catra understand what she’s asking. She doesn’t want them to leave right now, but she also doesn’t ever want them to leave. She feels safe with them, and she doesn’t want to lose that feeling again.</p><p>“We’re right here,” Catra says.</p><p>“And we’re not going anywhere,” Adora adds.</p><p>Danai starts to drift off, and she’s barely awake when Catra and Adora start a whispered conversation.</p><p>“We should probably ask her tomorrow,” Adora suggests, her hand coming up to run through Danai’s hair.</p><p>“I know,” Catra whispers, “I’m just scared she won’t want us.”</p><p>“Me too, but we won’t know until we talk to her about it.”</p><p>“You just love being right,” Catra says, sarcasm dripping through her words, “Ten years of being She-Ra really boosted your ego.”</p><p>“Like being the Magicat princess hasn’t boosted yours.”</p><p>“It’s very unfair that you have a good comeback when Danai is asleep on top of you and I can’t shove you without possibly waking her up.”</p><p>“That was my evil plan all along.”</p><p>Catra laughs, squeaky and soft, and moves closer to press a light kiss to Adora’s shoulder.</p><p>“Tomorrow then?” Adora asks.</p><p>“Tomorrow.”</p><p>~*~</p><p>Danai is sitting in the room that Adora and Catra told her is hers now, playing with the few toys C’yra and Felix could find. The room is silent besides the soft clacking as she builds with blocks, but she can hear Catra and Adora down the hall.</p><p>She wonders what they’re talking about, but even with her hearing, she can only pick up words here and there before Catra and Adora are in the doorway to her bedroom.</p><p>“Hey, kitten,” Catra says, coming over to sit across from Danai and her blocks, Adora sitting down beside her, “Can we talk to you about something?”</p><p>Danai nods, her hand holding the block coming up to her chest and clutching it close.</p><p>“It’s nothing bad,” Adora says quickly, noticing Danai’s shift in mood, “We just wanted your opinion on something.”</p><p>“What?” Danai asks, her voice soft and scared, the corner of the block digging into her hand.</p><p>“We wanted to know if you like it here,” Catra says, her hand coming up to unfurl Danai’s clenched hand, taking the block and placing it back with the others, and Adora opens her arms to offer for Danai to climb into her lap, and Danai takes the offer without question.</p><p>Adora wraps her arms around Danai tight, and Catra wraps her tail around Danai’s wrist.</p><p>Danai thinks about it, about the past few weeks here, and even though it’s been overwhelming, even though Half Moon seems so big and scary, even though she misses her little village with her mommy and daddy always there and the quiet of the Meadowlands, she feels safe whenever she’s with Catra and Adora.</p><p>“I like being with you two,” Danai says, sinking into the comfort.</p><p>“We like being with you, too,” Adora squeezes Danai lightly.</p><p>“We were thinking you could stay with us for a while,” Catra suggests, her voice soft and reassuring, “If you wanted.”</p><p>“Really?”</p><p>Danai looks up at Adora, and Adora nods. “Really.”</p><p>“Okay,” Danai says, and even though it comes out soft and still a little anxious, she’s so happy that Catra and Adora wants her.</p><p><em>They aren’t leaving me</em>, Danai thinks as Catra picks up one of the blocks and offers to play with Danai, <em>They don’t want to leave.</em></p><p>She stays in Adora’s lap, but Catra helps her build a tower out of the blocks, and when it’s built tall and wobbling, Catra suggests that Danai knock it over so they can start again, and Danai does, the blocks falling over Catra and Adora’s feet, the two of them laughing.</p><p><em>I hope they never leave,</em> Danai thinks, building the tower up again.</p><p>~*~</p><p>Catra makes her way through the library, scholars waving and bowing as she makes her way back to Felix’s usual spot deep in the history section, and when she makes it to the end of the aisle that opens up to the table, she stops.</p><p>Catra is a strong person. She’s the princess of the Magicats, and even though it’s from a time she’s not particularly proud of, she climbed the ranks of the Horde to be Hordak’s second-in-command. There aren’t many people she can’t best in combat, and she’s well known among the Magicats for her strength and skill, and yet the scene in front of her almost has her sinking to her knees with how cute it is.</p><p>Felix has Danai in his lap, and while he reads, Danai is coloring quietly, and Catra can see her tail swaying happily behind her.</p><p>For just a moment, Catra imagines it’s her there, imagines a life where the Horde never invaded Half Moon and she was never taken. She imagines having memories of spending time with Felix like this in the library, sitting on his lap while reading or drawing or doing anything else kids raised outside of the barracks do in their free time.</p><p>Danai stretches a little too far reaching for a crayon, and Felix has to put a quick arm around her to catch her before she can fall, and she smiles up at him in thanks, Felix returning the smile, and when she looks back down to her drawing, she catches Catra standing in the opening of the aisles.</p><p>Her eyes light up, and Felix releases her as she starts to squirm, his laugh quiet as she hits the floor and rushes over to Catra.</p><p>Catra picks her up without thinking, the ghosts of maybe-memories dissolving quickly. “Well, hi there, kitten,” Catra says through a laugh, “I didn’t mean to interrupt your fun.”</p><p>“I have to admit,” Felix gets up, a stack of papers offered to Catra, “She might be a better reading partner than you.”</p><p>“If I had known I would be dethroned so quickly, I would’ve had someone else watch her,” Catra says sarcastically, but there isn’t any bite to it, and Danai giggles softly.</p><p>Catra takes the offered papers, some revised trade agreement that C’yra wanted Felix to read through to catch anything in the fine print, and asks, “I’m assuming she wasn’t any trouble then?”</p><p>“Not at all,” Felix assures Catra, “We just sat and read and colored.” He says the second part to Danai, and Danai turns to Catra and nods along.</p><p>“Thanks, Dad.”</p><p>“Of course,” Felix ruffled Danai’s bangs, making them even messier than they already are, and Danai giggles and curls into Catra to try and get away, “I’m happy to watch her whenever you need me to.”</p><p>“And did you have fun with Felix?” Catra asks Danai, “Hopefully, he didn’t force you to read anything too boring.”</p><p>Danai nods quickly, and Felix smiles.</p><p>“You’re never too young to begin your studies,” Felix jokes, turning to go back to his table, and Danai watches him, her fingers starting to play with the clasp keeping Catra’s cape draped over the one shoulder.</p><p>“Everything okay, kitten?” Catra asks Danai quietly, the fidgeting telling her that Danai has something on her mind.</p><p>She’s not expecting a response, but Danai stops messing with the clasp and asks, “Can you please let me down?”</p><p>“Of course.”</p><p>Catra does, and Danai runs back to Felix, climbing up onto the bench and throwing her arms around him, and Catra sees Felix’s eyes go wide in surprise before he pulls Danai into a crushing hug, one that Danai doesn’t seem to mind.</p><p>Danai whispers something to Felix when she pulls back, and Felix laughs and says something back, his pinkie coming up between them.</p><p>Catra sees Danai’s head tilt and her eyebrows come together in confusion, and she watches Felix explain to Danai what a pinkie promise is, bringing Danai’s pinkie to wrap around his to seal the promise.</p><p>Danai says one last thing before bouncing off of the bench and running to Catra, taking Catra’s hand and attempting to pull her out of the library.</p><p>Catra waves to Felix as she lets Danai pulls her down the aisle, Felix’s laugh following them as they leave.</p><p>~*~</p><p>Just as she’s passing by the kitchens, Catra hears her name, and she stops and looks in through the cracked door.</p><p>It’s Adora, her hair half up and an apron thrown over her casual clothes, and Danai is sat on the counter beside her, some flour dusting her dark hair. Danai is stirring, and she looks up at Adora with a small smile and asks, “Do you think Catra will like these?”</p><p>“I know a secret,” Adora says, and she leans in to whisper to Danai even though, as far as she knows, no one is around to hear.</p><p>“What?” Danai whispers, but Catra can see her tail flicking with excitement.</p><p>“These are Catra’s favorite snacks,” Adora whispers, “And she especially loves them right before she has to have a meeting with the council.”</p><p>Catra hides a smile behind her hand, and she moves to hides herself behind the door when Adora leans up, but when she looks around the doorjamb, she sees Adora smiling at her and she knows she’s been caught.</p><p>Adora doesn’t give her away, though. She hands Danai the next ingredient and lets Danai add it to the filling and stir it in.</p><p>“I’ve never had these before,” Danai says, passing the bowl of filling over to Adora, and Adora starts scooping it out into the waiting dough rounds, closing them up like Pisica taught her.</p><p>“Well, as I’ve learned, the best thing about cooking is trying the food before you give it to someone else,” Adora says, putting some filling on a round and showing Danai how to close it up, “We’ll have to eat a few before we bring them to Catra to make sure they’re just right.”</p><p>Danai looks excited, her fingers trying to mirror Adora’s movement to close the empanada.</p><p>“Mommy and Daddy used to cook a lot,” Danai says as she starts another, and Catra sees Adora’s eyes going wide, and she’s sure she doesn’t look too different hidden where Danai can’t see her.</p><p>Danai hasn’t talked about her life out in the Meadowlands at all since Catra and Adora brought her to Half Moon. If she talks at all, she prefers asking questions about everything new around her, but this is the first time Danai has said anything about her life before.</p><p>“Did they?” Adora asks, focusing on the empanada in front of her to try and stay casual.</p><p>Danai nods, her tongue poking out past her teeth as she tries crimping the dough closed.</p><p>“Catra and I didn’t grow up cooking,” Adora says, moving onto a new round of dough, “Where we grew up, they thought there were more important things to learn. I didn’t even know food could be so good until I got to Bright Moon.”</p><p>Catra remembers the ration bars that the Fright Zone tried to pass off as a meal. She knows she had a favorite, but everything she remembers seems so bland in comparison to every meal she’s had since being dropped off on Beast Island.</p><p>She remembers which bar was Adora’s favorite though. The gray ones, which she somehow argued tasted the best, but Catra can’t even remember if they tasted different at all.</p><p>“But you cook now.” Danai shows her work to Adora, and Adora smiles and brushes the stray flour out of Danai’s hair, giving Danai a thumbs up to know she did a good job.</p><p>“I do,” Adora says through a laugh, “But to be honest, I’m not all that good at it, and I can really only cook a few things. Catra’s really good at it though, but she only likes to cook for special occasions.”</p><p>“Why did you learn to cook these?”</p><p>“They’re Catra’s favorite,” Adora puts a steadying hand on Danai’s back when Danai leans over a bit too far and starts to slide off the counter, “A few years ago, I asked Pisica to teach me how to make them for our anniversary.”</p><p>Danai finishes another, and Adora turns on the burner under the oil.</p><p>“I like cooking,” Danai says, stopping her work to watch Adora drop one of the empanadas into the oil to start frying.</p><p>“It’s fun,” Adora agrees, and Catra smiles when Adora suggests, “We can ask Pisica to teach you a few things if you want.”</p><p>Danai smiles and nods, and as they start frying up the rest of the empanadas, Catra sneaks away before she’s late to spar with C’yra.</p><p>Later, just as Catra is about to follow C’yra into the council’s quarters, she feels a tug at her formal cloak and looks down to find Danai holding a plate of empanadas, the one on top a little strange and lop-sided looking.</p><p>“Well, hi there, kitten,” Catra crouches down, “How did you know that empanadas are my favorite?”</p><p>“Adora told me.” Danai bounces on the pads of her toes.</p><p>“We made them together,” Adora says, and Catra looks up to see Adora smirking at her.</p><p>“These look delicious, so I’m assuming Danai did all the work,” Catra snarks, taking the empanada on top and biting into it, the filling still warm and incredibly sweet.</p><p>“Well, most of it,” Adora crosses her arms, and she shrugs, “I have to say, her crimping work in impeccable.”</p><p>Catra looks down at the empanada she’s holding, and she nods and says, “A master on her first try.”</p><p>Danai smiles bright, and Catra finishes the empanada and brushes Danai’s bangs out of her eyes.</p><p>“Catra,” C’yra says from behind her, and when Catra turns around, C’yra is smiling, but she nods her heads towards the room, “The council is waiting.”</p><p>“Can I take these, kitten?” Catra asks, pointing down at the plate, “I’ll need something sweet to get me through this meeting.”</p><p>Danai nods and hands the plate to Catra, giving her a quick kiss on the cheek.</p><p>Catra stands, and Adora comes and places a kiss right under Catra’s ears, whispering, “Next time, you should join us.”</p><p>Catra smirks and shrugs. “Who was I to interrupt mastery?”</p><p>Adora laughs, and she picks Danai up. “Have fun in your council meeting.”</p><p>Catra rolls her eyes, “I always do.”</p><p>~*~</p><p>C’yra’s office is suspiciously quiet when Adora knocks. Usually she can hear Catra and C’yra bickering on the other side, their banter going back and forth easily without any bite to their words, but when she hears C’yra softly tell her to come in, all she finds is C’yra at her desk, Danai curled up into her and asleep on C’yra’s shoulder.</p><p>“Catra’s out on the training fields with Cassandra,” C’yra explains quietly so that she doesn’t wake Danai up.</p><p>Adora nods, “I know they’ve had to skip the past few weeks.”</p><p>“Well, you know,” C’yra glances down to Danai, and Adora sees that Danai has her fingers fisted into C’yra’s formal shirt, “Things have been a bit busy.”</p><p>“That’s an understatement,” Adora says, then gestures to Danai, “I can take her from you if you want.”</p><p>“Oh, please,” C’yra breathes out, “I really don’t mind, but I’m not as young as I used to be and my back is incredibly stiff.”</p><p>C’yra tries to pull Danai away, but Danai just grips harder and cuddles further into C’yra.</p><p>Adora breathes out a laugh at C’yra’s expression and says, “Here, let me.”</p><p>She comes over and unwraps Danai’s hands from C’yra’s shirt, being gentle as she lifts Danai up and lets Danai cuddle into her instead.</p><p>“You’re good at that,” C’yra comments, standing up so that she can stretch out her back, and Adora hears a string of soft pops.</p><p>“Catra and I have had to do it a lot,” Adora says, readjusting Danai on her hip into a more comfortable position, “She hasn’t been sleeping a lot at night lately, so she just falls asleep whenever she’s comfortable.”</p><p>“Catra told me that she’s trying to spend the night in her own room.”</p><p>Adora sighs, “We can’t figure out why.”</p><p>“My guess?” C’yra says, “She doesn’t want to feel like a burden on you two.”</p><p>“She isn’t,” Adora says quickly.</p><p>“I know,” C’yra laughs softly, “You don’t need to assure me.”</p><p>“Sorry,” Adora sighs again, “I just don’t know what to do.”</p><p>C’yra sits back down behind her desk. “I don’t know if there’s anything you can do,” she says, “If there’s anything I learned after we found Catra on Beast Island, it’s that sometimes you need to let someone process something on their own in their own way.”</p><p>Adora takes a seat across from C’yra, Danai shifting until she settles again with a sigh. “She’s just so young,” Adora says, “I don’t want her to feel like she has to suffer alone.”</p><p>“Based on how comfortable she is with you and Catra, I doubt she thinks that,” C’yra says, motioning to Danai fast asleep in Adora’s arms, “Just hold her close when you can and remind her that you’re there if she ever needs you. That’s all any parent can do.”</p><p>“Thanks, C’yra.”</p><p>C’yra smiles, and it reminds Adora of the smiles she sees whenever C’yra watches Catra, like she’s never been happier than in this moment. “Of course, Adora.”</p><p>“I’m going to try and get her to take a nap in her bed.”</p><p>“Best of luck unlatching her from you,” C’yra says with a smirk that’s so much like Catra’s.</p><p>“I may just take a nap with her,” Adora says through a soft laugh, “It would be easier.”</p><p>“Well, hopefully I’ll see you at dinner unless you’re trapped underneath the world’s cutest trap.”</p><p>Adora gets up to leave, and when she gets to the door, she turns around to see that smile again, and Adora smiles too.</p><p>~*~</p><p>“I’m not getting on that thing.”</p><p>Swift Wind huffs, “I am not a thing, Catra.”</p><p>“Oh yes, I apologize,” Catra says sarcastically, “I will not be riding your magical talking horse to Bright Moon.”</p><p>“I am not Adora’s,” Swift Wind bats Catra with one of his wings, “We are partners.”</p><p>“Knock it off, you two,” Adora says, her voice tired. She shifts just so, adjusting Danai on her hip.</p><p>Danai looks between Catra and Swift Wind with wide, curious eyes.</p><p>“I don’t like flying,” Catra says to Adora, “You know I don’t like flying.”</p><p>“Well, it’s not like I like feeling your claws dig into my fur so we’re even.”</p><p>“<em>Guys</em>,” Adora says, exasperated, then turns to Catra, “It’s quicker to fly than to walk, and Glimmer might just kill me if we get there late.”</p><p>Catra rolls her eyes. “Because I care so much about that.”</p><p>Adora sighs. “Danai,” she says, and Danai’s gaze fixes on Adora, “Would you rather walk or fly?”</p><p>Danai looks over at Swift Wind, and he smiles.</p><p>“Fly,” Danai says quietly, but Catra can see the excitement in her eyes.</p><p>“The leader has spoken,” Adora says, passing Danai over to Catra so that she can climb onto Swift Wind’s back.</p><p>“You know, kid,” Catra says, lifting Danai up so Adora can take her back, “I feel a bit betrayed.”</p><p>Danai smiles as Adora settles her right behind Swift Wind’s wings, and it melts some of Catra’s nervous energy, because she’s sure that in all of the time Danai has spent in Half Moon, she’s never seen Danai this excited.</p><p>The nervousness comes back when Adora offers her a hand.</p><p>“You grip your claws into Adora, got it?” Swift Wind says, angling his head back to jab it at Catra.</p><p>Just for good measure, Catra grips with her claws to get herself comfortable behind Adora, and Swift Wind bucks once to get Catra back before Adora is telling them both to stop.</p><p>Catra wraps her arms around Adora, her claws completely sheathed.</p><p>As they take off, Catra can hear Danai talking softly to Adora, her excitement raising even more when they’re in the air. She points to the trees below, and Catra sees Adora wrap a tight, secure arm around Danai’s waist so she won’t accidentally throw herself off.</p><p>As the Whispering Woods starts to thin out and disappear into the lake that surrounds Bright Moon’s castle, Danai’s eyes go wide, and she looks back at Catra and Adora with wide, excited eyes.</p><p>Swift Wind lands right before the castle doors, his wings stretching out and pulling back in as he comes to a stop.</p><p>Glimmer and Bow are stood outside, each with a firm hand on their daughter’s shoulder to stop the inevitable onslaught.</p><p>Catra gets down from Swift Wind and takes Danai from Adora, holding her close and offering Adora a hand, which Adora completely ignores. She swings off of Swift Wind with a confidence that has Catra rolling her eyes, and she smirks at Catra when she lands solidly on her feet.</p><p>“Show off.”</p><p>“No insulting each other in front of Danai,” Adora says like they made that an actual rule, and Catra rolls her eyes with a fond smile.</p><p>And then Adora is knocked back a few steps, arms wrapping around her waist and an excited shout of, “Aunt Adora!”</p><p>“We held her off as long as we could,” Glimmer says with a sigh, but she’s smiling as Hina rounds on Catra and stops herself when she sees Danai gripping Catra as tightly as her little hands will allow.</p><p>“Hi,” Hina says happily, offering Danai her hand, but Danai hides her face in Catra’s shoulder, her little claws digging into Catra’s back.</p><p>Hina’s smile drops, and Bow comes up behind her and ruffles her hair just so, a few wayward sparkles falling from messy curls. “We talked about this, love,” Bow says gently, “Danai is a bit shy, so too much energy might scare her a bit.”</p><p>“Right,” Hina nods, and Catra and Adora both smile at each other, “Calm and cool.”</p><p>Catra jostles Danai, and Danai looks up at her with wide, terrified eyes.</p><p>“Come on, kitten,” Catra says softly, “Let’s introduce you to everyone.”</p><p>Adora puts a hand on Danai’s back, and Danai looks over her shoulder to see Adora smiling at her. “They’re really nice,” Adora promises, “Bow and Glimmer have been my friends for years, and Hina is so excited to get to play with you.”</p><p>Danai looks down at Hina, and Catra can see just how much Hina is holding back. She’s bouncing on the balls of her feet and her tiny little wings, not big enough yet to even pull her off of the ground, are fluttering.</p><p>Hina reminds Adora of Glimmer when they were teenagers, a small ball of energy waiting to be released, but Hina also has Bow’s restraint and thoughtful nature keeping her calm for the time being.</p><p>Danai quietly asks Catra to be let down, but she still stands close to Catra and Adora, her fingers fisted into Adora’s pants.</p><p>Hina offers Danai a hand. “Do you like coloring?”</p><p>Danai looks up at Catra and Adora, and Adora smiles and whispers, “It’s okay.”</p><p>“We can also do whatever you want to do,” Hina says softly, a thoughtfulness that mirrors Bow’s pushing through the excitement of a new friend.</p><p>Danai takes Hina’s hand, and Hina’s smile grows brighter than the Moon Stone, and she leads Danai into the castle, talking about a mile a minute.</p><p>The adults follow Hina and Danai into the family’s living quarters, and Hina leads Danai over to a small, child-sized table in the corner covered in toys and coloring books.</p><p>“That wasn’t as hard as I thought it was going to be,” Bow says as he pulls out Glimmer’s chair.</p><p>“It honestly went far smoother than I was expecting,” Catra throws herself down into a chair, earning a glare from Glimmer, “She’s been so hesitant around anyone that isn’t me or Adora.”</p><p>“She’s warmed up to C’yra and Felix too,” Adora sits and takes Catra’s hand, running her thumb over Catra’s knuckles, “They have watched her a few times, and Danai seems to really like spending time in the library.”</p><p>“Felix is thrilled,” Catra rolls her eyes.</p><p>“She seems to like being around Hina,” Glimmer nods over to Hina and Danai in the corner, Hina offering Danai one of the crayons, and even though her movements are hesitant, Danai takes it, “I was afraid Hina might be a bit too much for her.”</p><p>“Luckily she takes after Arrow Boy in thoughtfulness,” Catra snarks, and Glimmer looks like she’s about to lob a fistful of sparkles in Catra’s face, but Adora cuts in before she can.</p><p>“Speaking of,” Adora says quickly, squeezing Catra’s hand in a way that tells Catra to knock it off, “How are you two handling Hina’s powers?”</p><p>Bow groans and drops his face into his hands and Glimmer just laughs lightly, her hand coming up to rub Bow’s back.</p><p>“So you’re handling it well,” Catra says through a short laugh.</p><p>“She just disappears!” Bow’s voice is shrill but quiet enough that it doesn’t pull the attention of the kids, “I’ll be serving her lunch, and I’ll turn around to grab a glass, and then she’s just gone!”</p><p>Glimmer laughs and Adora gives Bow a few sympathetic pats.</p><p>“She’s started using it to get out of lessons,” Glimmer adds on, and Catra notes that Glimmer seems to find it more amusing than worrying, “I can’t tell you how many times her tutors have complained over the last few weeks.”</p><p>“You seem remarkable calm, Sparkles,” Catra comments.</p><p>“Well, as my mother informed me, this is payback for raising me,” Glimmer says with an eye roll.</p><p>“What did I do then?” Bow asks, his voice raising even more, and this time, it’s enough to draw the attention of Danai and Hina in the corner, and Hina’s head tilts in curiosity and confusion while Danai looks to Catra and Adora to make sure everything is okay.</p><p>“Daddy?” Hina asks, getting up and coming over to Bow.</p><p>Danai follows after and climbs into Adora’s lap, her eyes watching Bow.</p><p>“I’m fine, sweetie,” Bow promises before pulling Hina into his lap.</p><p>“You seemed upset,” Hina looks over to Glimmer, “Is he upset?”</p><p>“He’s just being dramatic,” Glimmer assures Hina, a hand coming up to push a piece of messy hair out of Hina’s face.</p><p>Bow glares at Glimmer over Hina’s head, and Glimmer just gives him a sweet smile in response.</p><p>Adora feels a tug at her sleeve, and she looks down to see Danai tugging on her jacket sleeve, her eyes still on Bow.</p><p>“Is everything okay?” Adora asks softly, pulling Catra’s attention to the two of them.</p><p>“<em>Is</em> he okay?” Danai asks, her voice filled with worry.</p><p>Adora smiles, and Catra brushes Danai’s bangs from her face. “Yeah, kitten,” Catra says, a soft smile on her lips, “Bow is just fine.”</p><p>“You promise?”</p><p>“Why don’t you ask him?” Adora suggests.</p><p>Danai looks between Adora and Catra and then turns back to Bow, and Bow is watching her with a soft, gentle expression. He doesn’t say anything, and Hina smiles wide at her new friend, and Danai curls her claws in Adora’s jacket sleeve before asking, “Are you okay?”</p><p>“I am,” Bow nods, and Hina smiles up at him, “We were just talking about adult things that are a bit stressful.”</p><p>“That’s boring,” Hina says bluntly, and Glimmer and Catra snort, Bow looking scandalized and Adora hiding a smile behind Danai.</p><p>“You’re right,” Catra tells Hina, “It’s incredibly boring. Everything we talk about is absolutely awful. Can I join you and Danai instead?”</p><p>Hina’s eyes light up, and she starts squirming in Bow’s arms. “Will you really join us, Aunt Catra?” Hina asks excitedly, then quickly repeats, “Please,” over and over, and Catra thinks that this would’ve been overwhelming in another life when she was a different person, but who she is now laughs and gets up, moving around Adora to grab Hina from Bow and throw Hina over her shoulder.</p><p>Hina squeals, and Catra jostles her lightly.</p><p>“I’m stealing your kid,” Catra calls over her shoulder to Bow and Glimmer, and Hina’s laughs.</p><p>As Catra gets to the door, she turns around and asks Danai, “You wanna come with, kitten?”</p><p>Danai looks over at Catra and then up at Adora, and she shakes her head no, curling closer into Adora and closing her eyes.</p><p>Catra never really expected Danai to come along, and she can already see Danai falling asleep, so she waves to Adora before leaving the living area.</p><p>“If she has even a scratch on her, I’m throwing you into the prison!” Glimmer calls after them, and Catra’s faint voice replies, “I would love to see you try.”</p><p>“Admit it,” Adora says, absentmindedly running her fingers through Danai’s hair and over her back, “You love when Catra plays with Hina because Hina always comes back completely spent.”</p><p>“It is easier to get her in bed whenever you and Catra are here,” Glimmer admits, and then she smiles as Danai starts to purr softly, “It doesn’t look like you and Catra really have that problem.”</p><p>Adora looks down to see Danai completely passed out, and she can’t say she’s surprised. Danai doesn’t sleep much when she isn’t cuddled in between Catra and Adora, and she’s been trying to stay in her own room and sleep alone lately, so she’s been waking up exhausted.</p><p>With all of the excitement of the day, Adora is more surprised it took Danai this long to climb into either her or Catra’s lap and fall asleep.</p><p>“It’s all been a lot,” Adora says, and she hopes it encompasses everything, not just a day spent in Bright Moon with friends.</p><p>Bow’s eyes are glistening slightly, and he looks like he might combust. “She’s just so cute,” he says like the amount of cuteness causes him pain, “I mean, I’ve seen the kittens in Half Moon, but Danai is purring and it’s probably the cutest thing I’ve ever seen.”</p><p>Adora breathes out a laugh. “Between her and Catra, I don’t even notice it anymore.”</p><p>“I might die from how cute that is.”</p><p>“I think we might’ve broke him,” Glimmer deadpans.</p><p>“It’s not really difficult,” Adora adds on, and Bow’s overflowing-with-cute face turns into a glare.</p><p>“Not all of us live in an entire city of Magicats who have probably the cutest offspring of anyone on Etheria.”</p><p>“We have a kid, you know,” Glimmer says, “A very cute kid who takes after you a lot more than she takes after me.”</p><p>“I can think Hina is the cutest child alive while also admitting that Danai has the cutest little purr I’ve ever heard in my life,” Bow reasons, “Hina doesn’t purr, so it’s perfectly valid.”</p><p>Glimmer and Adora laugh, and Danai makes a little squeak in protest at all the noise and buries her face as far in Adora’s chest as physically possible, her ear resting right over Adora’s heartbeat.</p><p>“How has everything really been?” Glimmer asks softly.</p><p>“Honestly?” Adora takes a deep breath, “It’s been really hard. I mean, some things were easy. Asking Danai to stay with us in Half Moon was incredibly easy, but I’m starting to feel like Hakim does <em>not</em> like Catra and me together and is trying to throw a wrench in every part of our lives, because I swear he’s opposed us every step of the way, and I don’t know if that’s just me being paranoid, or if it’s really happening.”</p><p>“What do you mean?” Bow reaches out and puts a comforting hand on Adora’s shoulder.</p><p>“It’s just,” Adora looks down at Danai to give herself a chance to gather her thoughts, “I don’t know whether I’m just overthinking it. First, there was the issue that Catra is the Magicat princess and I’m not a Magicat, so I wasn’t a suitable choice for the binding ceremony, and then we decided <em>not</em> to do the binding ceremony, and that was an issue. And then, with Danai, despite C’yra and Felix both deciding Danai would stay with us regardless, Hakim pushed us into adopting her, and it was fine. Catra and I both decided it was the best choice for her, but we had to decide on the spot.”</p><p>Adora’s ramble leaves her breathless, and she feels that tight feeling in her chest that she got so used to when she was younger, and she wishes Catra was here, because Catra’s presence is the easiest thing to use to ground herself, but Catra is off with Hina and none the wiser.</p><p>Danai is here, though, her fingers fisted into Adora’s shirt and her purrs rumbling, quieter than Catra’s but still loud enough to vibrate into Adora, and she closes her eyes and hugs Danai closer.</p><p>“Hey,” Adora opens her eyes to see Glimmer right in front of her, and Adora feels like they’re teenagers again, a younger Glimmer crouched down in front of a recently-defected Adora as she talks Adora through a panic attack that were a lot more frequent back then.</p><p>“It’s not paranoia,” Glimmer assures Adora, and when Adora looks to Bow for some kind of confirmation, he nods and smiles.</p><p>“It seems like he’s just trapped in tradition,” Glimmer continues, “And sadly, to him, you’re the thing that breaks that.” Glimmer grabs Adora’s hand and squeezes. “It doesn’t matter, though. Catra chose you, and she keeps choosing you and this life you two have together every day, and I’m pretty sure she would brutally murder Hakim before she let him get in between you two.”</p><p>“And the Magicats keep choosing you too,” Bow adds on, the hand that’s on Adora’s shoulder running gently over Adora’s arm, “C’yra and Felix would never let outdated traditions get in the way of your happiness with Catra, and from what I can tell, most of the Magicats support the pull from tradition.”</p><p>Adora wants to believe them, and she really tries to, but there’s still that nagging voice in the back of her head that sounds like someone she wishes she could just forget.</p><p><em>Oh Adora,</em> the voice whispers to her, <em>Isn’t is clear that you’ve exhausted your use? What are you without She-Ra and a war to fight? How is it that you’ve let Catra pull ahead of you? You need to do better.</em></p><p>It’s quiet, so quiet, but still just there enough to cast doubts and shadows over Bow and Glimmer’s comfort and assurances.</p><p>“I just don’t think I’m enough,” Adora says, quiet enough that she can pretend for just a moment that she’s saying her worries into an empty room and not to her two best friends, “For Catra, as She-Ra,” she paused, running her fingers through Danai’s soft, messy hair, “And I’m worried that because I’m not enough, I’m going to end up like <em>her</em> and ruin Danai in the same way she ruined me.”</p><p>Adora tries to remember the confidence she had when she promised Catra they wouldn’t be like Shadow Weaver, that they could raise Danai feeling loved and enough, but it’s disappeared in the face of anxieties she thought she had already pressed down deep enough to be forgotten.</p><p>“You are enough,” Glimmer says like it’s not even question, “You are enough for Catra, and enough as She-Ra, and most importantly, you, Adora, <em>are enough</em>, and you want to know how I know you won’t end up like Shadow Weaver?”</p><p>Adora waits for Glimmer to continue, and luckily, Glimmer understands that Adora doesn’t really know what to say in response.</p><p>“I know you won’t be like her, because you’re worried about becoming her,” Glimmer says with a confidence Adora doesn’t feel, “You’re looking at how you were raised and correcting, and I know Catra is doing the same. And I won’t pretend like you won’t make mistakes. Bow and I have made plenty, but making mistakes and fixing them is sort of what being a parent is about.”</p><p>“And you learn from those mistakes,” Bow continues, “And sometimes the mistakes can be big, but that doesn’t mean you can’t learn and heal from them. I mean, remember how my dads didn’t know I was in the Rebellion?”</p><p>“And my mom’s overprotectiveness?” Glimmer adds on with a laugh.</p><p>“And neither of us resent our parents for either,” Bow finishes, “We worked through it and came out on the other side stronger.”</p><p>Adora doesn’t know what to say. Bow and Glimmer are making good points, and logically it all makes sense. She was there when Bow’s dads learned that Bow had been lying to them, and she saw how they were happy that Bow found a place he belonged, even if they were upset that Bow didn’t feel like he could be himself around them. And she watched Angella become more and more comfortable with Glimmer taking a bigger role in the war before Hordak’s defeat, and even now, even as they’re seeing an era of peace, Angella struggles with Glimmer going out and facing the insurgents who have kept popping up throughout the years, but she never stops Glimmer and never tries to keep her from a fight.</p><p>Adora takes a deep breath and feels the tightness in her chest start to ebb away. It’s not completely gone, and she knows it’ll take a few more deep breaths to really go away, but she feels better. She feels less anxious.</p><p>Shadow Weaver’s voice is just a murmur now.</p><p>“You’ll do just fine,” Glimmer says, “And if you ever need help, you have so many people willing to offer, okay?”</p><p>Adora nods.</p><p>“Okay,” Glimmer squeezes Adora’s hand one more time before going back to her seat, and the conversation starts up again like nothing happened. They fall into easy conversation about their lives, and Adora thinks that they’ve gotten a bit boring since Hordak’s defeat. Day to day used to be visiting villages and stopping Horde forces, but now their lives are meetings and peace and quiet, and Adora thinks that she prefers this.</p><p>Sometimes, she misses the excitement, and she misses having a reason to turn into She-Ra. The Sword of Protection has become more of an accessory since the war ended, resting as a bracelet on Adora’s wrist just in case She-Ra is ever needed, but there aren’t as many threats anymore.</p><p>Adora should mind. Being She-Ra was such a big part of her identity for so long, but as they reminisce about a time right after they had all met, Bow telling the story with exaggerated gestures and sound effects, Adora doesn’t mind.</p><p>She-Ra was incredibly important to her for a long time, but now, she’s more than happy just being Adora.</p><p>Midway through Bow retelling the story about some adventure he and Sea Hawk went on, Catra comes back with Hina cradled against her shoulder, Hina’s eyes barely staying open despite her attempts to stay awake.</p><p>“I think I might’ve tired her out,” Catra says in greeting, jostling Hina on her shoulder, and Hina groans in protest.</p><p>“I’m not tired,” Hina barely gets out, her eyes closed despite her claim.</p><p>Glimmer breathes out a laugh, getting up to take Hina from Catra. “Whatever you say, love.”</p><p>Hina curls into Glimmer, taking a deep breath and letting out a soft sigh.</p><p>“We should probably get her to bed,” Bow says, getting up to follow Glimmer.</p><p>Catra sees Danai still fast asleep against Adora and says, “Yeah, we should probably get back to Half Moon too.”</p><p>“Hopefully we can get her to sleep in her bed for a bit,” Adora agrees, getting up and keeping a strong arm around Danai to keep Danai against her chest.</p><p>“I guess our crazy, wild night are all over,” Catra jokes, and Glimmer rolls her eyes.</p><p>“When did we ever have any crazy, wild nights, Catra?” Glimmer deadpans.</p><p>“Oh, I was referring to me and Bow,” Catra takes Danai from Adora and heads back out where she knows Swift Wind is waiting, “We had some fun times.”</p><p>“Remember the Kingdom of Snows?” Bow asks, leaning into the joke, “I’m pretty sure Frosta banned us for a year.”</p><p>“Right,” Catra pretends to remember, “It took some groveling and more than a few gifts for her to even think about allowing us to enter her kingdom ever again.”</p><p>“Okay, you two,” Glimmer stopped them, “Catra, get out of my castle and my kingdom. Adora, it was lovely seeing you. Thank you for reminding me why you’re the only friend I can stand.”</p><p>“Tell Angella we said hi,” Adora says, giving Glimmer a quick hug and pressing a kiss to Hina’s crown.</p><p>“And give our condolences to Felix and C’yra for having that as a daughter,” Glimmer says in good-bye.</p><p>Catra sticks out her tongue at Glimmer as Bow opens the castle’s front doors for her, and Swift Wind swoops down when he sees them walking out.</p><p>Adora swings up onto Swift Wind’s back easily, saying something before reaching out for Danai so Catra could get up, and as soon as they’re all secure, Swift Wind takes off for Half Moon.</p><p>~*~</p><p>“Stop twitching,” Adora says through a laugh, her hand coming up to keep Catra’s hand still, “You’re the one who trusted Scorpia and Entrapta to watch over Danai when Glimmer called us.”</p><p>“It’s not Scorpia that I’m worried about,” Catra says as they make their way up to Dryl’s doors, “I’m just worried Entrapta tried to do some weird experiment on her, or some robots went rogue and started tearing up the castle, Danai included.”</p><p>“Oh, come on,” Adora presses the button for the buzzer at the front door to let Entrapta know they’re here, “That was one time.”</p><p>“Not helping, Adora,” Catra says through gritted teeth.</p><p>“Plus, that was due to a virus in some First Ones technology, so Danai is completely safe.”</p><p>Catra glares at Adora, but Adora just smiles and holds the door open for Catra as Entrapta lets them in.</p><p>They wait in the courtyard, and Catra crosses her arms and taps her toes against the stone, her tail flicking.</p><p>“Would you stop that?” Adora bats Catra’s tail away as it flicks against her thigh, “These are our friends, you know.”</p><p>“Nothing seems out of the ordinary,” Catra comments, looking around the courtyard and seeing everything in the same place as it was in when they dropped Danai off earlier.</p><p>“You’re worrying too much.”</p><p>“And you’re not worrying enough,” Catra turns on Adora, “Entrapta is my friend, but I wouldn’t exactly call all of her experiments ethical. It’s why we became friends in the first place.”</p><p>Adora crosses her arms and smirks. “You’re so cute when you’re morally gray.”</p><p>“Stop that,” Catra shoves her hand against Adora’s face, but Adora just laughs and tries to grab Catra’s wrists to get her to stop.</p><p>“Fascinating,” Catra hears from the direction of the castle, and the telltale click on a recorder being pressed, “Log, Day 563 of observing relationship behavior. Adora and Catra seem to find some form of enjoyment from shoving each other. How gratification is reached has yet to be seen.”</p><p>Catra groans and Adora laughs, letting Catra go, and when they turn, Danai is running over to them, crashing into Catra’s legs and then Adora’s.</p><p>“Wildcat!”</p><p>It’s the only warning Catra gets before Scorpia scoops her up into a tight hug, and even though Catra’s come to really enjoy Scorpia’s hugs, she still fights them, even if it is halfhearted.</p><p>“We literally saw each other hours ago, Scorp,” Catra pushes against Scorpia’s shoulders.</p><p>“But it was only for a few moments,” Scorpia holds on tighter, and Catra’s sure she hears her spine crack, “I didn’t really get a chance to say hello.”</p><p>Catra groans and goes slack. “Hello, Scorpia.”</p><p>Scorpia’s eyes light up, and she goes straight into a retelling of her day. Catra hears giggling from behind her, and she turns her head to see Adora and Danai giggling at her expense.</p><p>Oddly, she doesn’t really mind.</p><p>“Hey, Scorp?”</p><p>Scorpia stops mid-sentence and goes, “Yeah?”</p><p>“Can you let me down?”</p><p>“Oh, of course, Wildcat!” Scorpia lets Catra go, and Catra lands on her feet and brushes out the wrinkles in her clothes.</p><p>“Please tell me that you didn’t allow Entrapta to experiment on my kid,” Catra comments, turning to see that Adora and Entrapta are deep in conversation.</p><p>“Actually, when Danai wasn’t cuddled up with me, she was following Entrapta around and asking to help,” Scorpia reaches for her commpad and taps a few things before pulling up pictures of Danai and Entrapta working on whatever experiment that caught Entrapta’s attention, “There was something incredibly endearing about it, though I’m pretty sure Entrapta did all of the talking.”</p><p>Catra smiles and tries to hide it. “Yeah, she’s not much of a talker.”</p><p>“But she’s so cuddly,” Scorpia says, one of her claws coming up to her cheeks and her eyes sparkling, “It’s like having a version of you that doesn’t fight my hugs.”</p><p>“Scorp—”</p><p>“Oh no, I know it’s all just an act at this point,” Scorpia stops Catra’s explanation, and Catra’s smile turns soft, “Danai just climbed into my lap, though, and she didn’t seem to mind my claws or all of the spikes.”</p><p>“I’m pretty sure she would fall asleep on a bed of nails,” Catra comments, and when she looks closer at the pictures Scorpia took, she sees Danai smiling up at Entrapta mid-explanation, her hands moving wildly, and then there’s another of Danai hard at work, Entrapta watching over her carefully.</p><p>“Entrapta didn’t let her do anything too dangerous,” Scorpia promises Catra.</p><p>“No, I know,” Catra flips to the next picture, one of Entrapta teaching Danai how to use one of her many tools, “It’s just unexpected, but I guess it makes sense.”</p><p>When Catra sees Scorpia’s brows come together in confusion, she says, “Danai’s favorite place in Half Moon is the library, so it makes sense that she saw Nerd Princess and wanted to know more.”</p><p>Catra feels a hand on her back, and she turns around to find Adora behind her, Danai still listening to Entrapta.</p><p>“So, it seems like Danai and Entrapta got along really well,” Adora says with a smug smile.</p><p>“Shut up,” Catra growls, elbowing into Adora’s stomach.</p><p>“What, did Scorpia not tell you?” Adora dodges the next elbow, throwing Catra a little off balance, “Danai wasn’t experimented on at all. In fact, she enjoyed helping Entrapta with her many experiments that I heard <em>all</em> about.”</p><p>“Adora—” Catra grits out in warning, but Adora’s smug smile stays firmly in place.</p><p>“It looks like there was nothing for you to worry about,” Adora teases, her hands coming to rest on Catra’s hips, and Catra turns quickly to tackle Adora to the ground, and Adora just laughs while Catra shoves the heel of her hand against Adora’s cheek.</p><p>There’s a click, and then, “Continue log, day 563. Catra has tackled Adora to the ground, and there seems to be no aggression behind the action. Adora is laughing as though she receives some form of enjoyment from it.”</p><p>Adora tips her head back, and Catra looks up to see Danai and Entrapta looking down at them, Entrapta with her recorder held up for her to talk into and Danai looking down at them with confusion.</p><p>“Hi, Dany,” Adora says with a laugh, “This is how Catra shows affection.”</p><p>“Adora claims that Catra shows her affection through these means,” Entrapta says into her recorder, “This is supported by the fact that Catra fights Scorpia when a hug is administered and that I have seen her tackle Glimmer and Bow, people she claims to be friends with.”</p><p>“Entrapta,” Catra growls in warning, but Entrapta isn’t put off by it at all.</p><p>“It is possible that this is how all Magicats show affection, but without solid data on Magicats as a whole, that will remain a hypothesis until more data can be collected.”</p><p>“Are you done?” Catra pushes herself up and offers Adora her hand to help Adora up too.</p><p>Entrapta puts a finger up, says, “End log,” and clicks the recorder off.</p><p>“Thank you,” Catra says through a sigh.</p><p>“You and Adora have provided excellent data in my experiment concerning couples’ behavior,” Entrapta is excited, and Catra’s sure it’s just because she’s talking about one of her experiments.</p><p>“Good, I’m glad,” Catra says, trying very hard to keep the sarcasm out of her voice, but she can’t keep the grumble of, “I love having my love life analyzed,” in.</p><p>Adora laughs, and Scorpia throws an arm around Catra’s shoulders. “I love getting the Super Pal Trio altogether!” Scorpia says enthusiastically, and Entrapta claps her hands while Catra groans and lets Scorpia squish her even closer.</p><p>Danai looks between all of them, watching Scorpia hug Catra and Catra pretend not to enjoy it. She watches Entrapta clap and talk excitedly and Adora stand back and let the group of friends have their moment, and she’s curious, because she’s only ever seen Catra and Adora around Half Moon or with Bow and Glimmer.</p><p>Here, around Scorpia and Entrapta, Catra is different, and Danai wonders if it’s because Catra is away from the Magicats, or if it’s because these friends seem to be Catra’s first, unlike Bow and Glimmer seeming to be Adora’s.</p><p>Scorpia lets Catra go, and even though she brushes her clothes off and makes some grumbled comment about personal space, Danai sees a rare soft smile from Catra.</p><p>Then Catra looks at her, and the soft smile stays, and Catra says, “You ready to go, kitten?”</p><p>Danai smiles, and she doesn’t say anything, but she does run to Scorpia and wrap her arms around Scorpia’s waist, and Scorpia doesn’t waste any time in wrapping Danai up in the tightest, best hug she’s ever had. It makes her remember something Catra said to her the first day they met.</p><p>“<em>She’ll tell you she gives the best hugs,</em>” Catra said to her, her voice soft in an attempt to make Danai feel comfortable, “<em>And it’s true, but you can’t tell anyone I admitted that.</em>”</p><p>“Catra said you gave the best hugs,” Danai whispers, but she knows Scorpia hears her, because Scorpia squeezes her just a bit tighter.</p><p>“Do you agree?”</p><p>Danai looks up and when Scorpia looks down, she nods.</p><p>Scorpia smiles wide. “Well, thank you, mini Wildcat,” Scorpia says, and then her brows come together and she says, “Small Wildcat? Maybe Wildkitten.”</p><p>“Wildkitten is the best option, because a kitten is a smaller version of a cat,” Entrapta pipes in.</p><p>Danai pulls away from Scorpia’s hug, and Entrapta smiles at her, one of her ponytails coming up to pat Danai on the head.</p><p>“Thank you for the help, small lab assistant,” Entrapta says, continuing to pat Danai’s head, and Danai smiles. “With a few more years of practice, you would make an excellent, regular-sized lab assistant,” Entrapta says, and Danai takes it as the compliment it is.</p><p>“Come on, kitten,” Catra calls to Danai, and Danai runs over and lets Catra lift her up and hold her close.</p><p>Catra and Adora say goodbye to Scorpia and Entrapta, and as they leave Dryl, Adora says, “Did you have fun today, Dany?”</p><p>Danai looks over Catra shoulder to Dryl’s castle and looks back at Adora and nods a yes.</p><p>~*~</p><p>Half Moon always calms down around twilight. It’s like every busy Magicat immediately stops, and the entire city goes quiet. All of the venders who sell in the square outside of the palace pack up, and even though there’s the stray Magicat here and there who find themselves out in the light of magic lamps, almost everyone finds a reason to be home.</p><p>Catra loves twilight, because it’s when her duties as a princess go away, and she has an hour or two of her own before she sits down to dinner with Adora, C’yra, Felix, and now Danai.</p><p>Usually she hides herself away in the Whispering Woods, climbing a tree and watching as the sky darkens. The small creatures of the Whispering Woods always seem to wake up around twilight, and there’s buzzing and chirping as the forest comes to life.</p><p>It’s relaxing in a way that reminds Catra of Beast Island, of the dead silence that fell over the island at night. No bustling cities, no princesses. Just the Magicats and the creatures in the forests around them.</p><p>Just as she’s about to head out of the castle, Etheria’s moon casting an orange glow over everything, Catra hears the soft pad of running feet.</p><p>Danai comes running down the hallway, sliding just a little as she rounds the corner and stops right in front of Catra.</p><p>“Can I come?” Danai asks, soft and unsure.</p><p>“Did you tell Adora, C’yra, and Felix you were coming to ask me?” Catra starts looking around, almost expecting Adora to come rushing around the corner wondering where Danai is, her eyes completely panicked.</p><p>Danai nods. “I told Adora, and she said if I hurried, I could find you here.”</p><p>Catra smiles and offers a hand. “Come on then, kitten.”</p><p>Danai doesn’t ask to be held, and she rushes out into the square with more confidence than Catra has seen since they brought her to Half Moon. She waves at Pisica as Pisica closes her stand, and Pisica smiles and waves back, shouting something about a cooking lesson next week. Catra watches Danai smile and give Pisica a thumbs up, and she sees Pisica laugh as she closes up.</p><p>A few of the other venders wave to Catra and Danai as well. The fisherman, Indra, stops Catra to ask something, and when Danai stops too, he smiles at her and offers her a bow, and Danai giggles.</p><p>They make their way out through the square and into the Whispering Woods, Catra going to her usual tree and helping Danai up onto the first sturdy branch.</p><p>They climb until their can see the sky through the leaves, and Danai snuggles into Catra and looks up at the sky burning a bright orange.</p><p>It reminds her of her first night in Half Moon, woken up from a nightmare and scared at everything new around her. She remembers watching Catra startle awake too, and Catra bringing her to this spot and making her feel safe again, just like Catra did in her village.</p><p>It was only a few months ago, but Danai feels like she’s been in Half Moon longer. She can remember the Meadowlands and her mommy and daddy, and it hurts when she does, but when it starts to hurt, Catra and Adora, or C’yra and Felix, or one of the many people Catra and Adora surround themselves with always seem to be there for her.</p><p><em>It’s nice</em>, Danai thinks, <em>Feeling so safe.</em></p><p>Catra curls her tail around Danai’s ankle, and Danai watches a bird take off from another tree, black and dark blue against the sky.</p><p>“Did you do this with C’yra?” Danai asks, suddenly curious.</p><p>“No,” Catra answers, her voice a little sad, “When I was your age, I didn’t live here in Half Moon.”</p><p>“How come?”</p><p>Catra sighs and wonders how she’s supposed to explain what happened to her. “Because some really awful people came and took me away,” she says, hoping it’s enough, “They made me live with them.”</p><p>“Mean people?”</p><p>Catra rests her head on Danai’s and closes her eyes. “Yeah,” she whispers, “Really mean people.”</p><p>“Were you alone?” Danai wiggles, and Catra leans back so that Danai can turn to look at her.</p><p>“Not really,” Catra reaches out and runs a few fingers through Danai’s hair, “Adora was there. That’s how we met, actually.”</p><p>“Where the mean people took you?”</p><p>“Yeah,” Catra says, “They took her too.”</p><p>“Where is Adora from?” Danai asks, and Catra’s surprised that Danai is asking so many questions. She’s usually so quiet, but she’s so curious right now, talking more than Catra is used to, but she loves that Danai feels comfortable enough right now to just be a curious kid.</p><p>“Really far away,” Catra smiles, “You should ask her, though. She’ll be able to explain a whole lot better than I can.”</p><p>Danai nods and turns to settle back against Catra again, her tail wrapping itself around Catra’s thigh.</p><p>“Do you ever miss that place?” Danai asks, her voice soft.</p><p>“Never,” Catra says, and even as Danai’s questions make her think of the previous Fright Zone, there’s no nostalgia, “It was a bad place, and I already have everything that was good from it here with me.”</p><p>“Like Adora?”</p><p>“And Scorpia and Entrapta too,” Catra adds on, “Those two were all I really had for a very long time, and even though I wasn’t the best person, and they had every reason to leave, they stuck by me. Scorpia even came to my rescue when I really needed her.”</p><p>Danai perks up and turns, “Scorpia saved you?”</p><p>Catra breathes out a laugh. “A story for another time,” she says, “Plus, Scorpia tells it better than me. I’m pretty sure there’s even sound effects.”</p><p>The orange of the sky burns out as dark blue and black creeps around the edges, and the luminescent bugs of the Whispering Woods flicker to life. One sweeps down and lands on Danai’s nose, and she looks at it with wide, curious eyes.</p><p>“If you offer it your finger, it’ll crawl onto it,” Catra says, and Danai does just that.</p><p>The luminescent bug crawls from Danai’s nose to her finger and down her hand, stopping in her palm and fluttering its wings out.</p><p>“They’re pretty,” Danai whispers as the bug flashes pale light before lifting off into the woods.</p><p>“I know,” Catra whispers too, because anything louder seems out of place in this moment, “There’s a lot of things in the Whispering Woods that glow.”</p><p>“Why?”</p><p>“That’s a question for Felix or Entrapta. I just know what I see.”</p><p>The bugs continue to fly around them, and every now and then, Danai offers her hand to one nearby, the bug taking just a moment to rest and flicker its light before flying off again.</p><p>There’s no more orange left in the sky, the only light coming from the bugs around them and the pale glow of the moons over the treetops.</p><p>“Come on, kitten,” Catra says quietly, nudging Danai gently, “If we don’t get back for dinner, the food will get cold.”</p><p>“Can we do this again?”</p><p>Catra smiles and starts helping Danai climb down. “Whenever you want.”</p><p>~*~</p><p>Catra strips down to her underclothes, leaving her pants and shirt and cape scattered across the room, before flopping into bed.</p><p>Adora laughs, and Catra just groans in response.</p><p>“Long day?” Adora asks while digging through their drawers for a shirt and shorts.</p><p>“No talking,” Catra mumbles into the pillow, and Adora can barely make out what she says.</p><p>Catra feels something soft hit her back, and she turns to glare at Adora.</p><p>Adora just smirks. “I’m sorry. I can’t understand you through the pillow.”</p><p>“I swear to you, Sparkles doesn’t know when to stop talking,” Catra turns onto her back, the shirt that Adora threw at her getting trapped underneath her, “I’m just in Bright Moon for the day to do my job as Half Moon’s princess, and all she wants to do is talk my ear off about finding tutors and training Hina so that she stop freaking Bow out every two seconds.”</p><p>“Well, we do have a kid now too,” Adora pulls the shirt from under Catra, “As I understand it, their children tend to be the main talking point for people with kids.”</p><p>Catra watches Adora shrug out of her jacket and drap it over the desk chair, and she’s too tired to even remind Adora to hang it up.</p><p>“She asked me what we’re doing for Danai’s education,” Catra groans.</p><p>“We should probably think about that.” Adora pulls her shirt over her head and throws it into the laundry basket before pulling the soft sleep shirt on.</p><p>“I’ll ask C’yra about it tomorrow,” Catra says dismissively, “I think Danai’s finally comfortable enough that we can start thinking about those things.”</p><p>And Catra’s right. Over the months since that day in the Meadowlands, Danai has slowly but surely found her footing in Half Moon. Every other week, she joins Pisica in her stall to learn how to cook, and they have spent most weekends over in Bright Moon so that Danai and Hina can see each other.</p><p>Every few weeks, Danai goes to Dryl for the day to help Entrapta on pre-approved experiments, and she’s covered with motor oil and grease when Catra and Adora pick her up, but she spends the entire way back to Half Moon talking excitedly about whatever project Entrapta let her help with.</p><p>It’s not all okay. Once or twice a month, Danai still slips into bed with Catra and Adora, tears clumping the fur right under her eyes, and there’s a lot of things that still startle her, but she’s comfortable enough now that schooling isn’t completely out of the question as a next step.</p><p>Adora gets finished changing, and when she gets into bed, she looks down at Catra with a smile.</p><p>“What?” Catra asks, her eyes narrowing suspiciously.</p><p>“Remember when we thought we wouldn’t be good at this?”</p><p>Catra shrugs. “It made sense at the time. Everything was so sudden.”</p><p>“Well, we haven’t completely messed up yet.”</p><p>“You lost her in the castle a few weeks ago,” Catra says, smirking up at Adora.</p><p>“Yes, because she has your horrible habit of disappearing when something upsets her,” Adora defends herself, “I haven’t learned her spots yet.”</p><p>“But you will.”</p><p>“Yeah,” Adora smiles, “I will.”</p><p>Catra’s smirk softens into a smile, and Adora’s eyes go a bite wide before she asks, “What?”</p><p>“I’m just happy,” Catra answers in a moment of vulnerability that are getting more and more common as she gets older, “And I never really I would have all of this. I thought I was just doomed to become a foot soldier in Hordak’s army and die on the battlefield for a cause I never believed in, and yet somehow, I’m here. With you. And we have a kid. And I just never thought I would ever be here.”</p><p>“Yeah, I know the feeling,” Adora’s fingers come up to brush over the short, soft fur behind Catra’s ear, “It’s a bit crazy, isn’t it?”</p><p>“Unexpected, for sure,” Catra breathes out, her eyes closing and purrs rumble through her chest.</p><p>“I wouldn’t trade it for anything on Etheria though,” Adora whispers, settling down and letting Catra roll over to lay across her chest.</p><p>“Yeah,” Catra says, Adora’s heartbeat thrumming in her eyes and Adora’s fingers continuing to run through her hair, “Me either.”</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Introducing Danai! Or Dany, as Adora calls her and will eventually be the nickname she goes by when she's older. Y'all, I got a whole lot of stuff written about Danai (like, notes and stuff), and I really enjoyed exploring her as a character. I also loved writing Catra and Adora as moms, and I just want to say, this was planned before Finn was created by Noelle, but I've always intended for this to be the origin story in this universe of Catra and Adora having a kid. They were two misplaced kids, so in my mind, it made a whole lot of sense to have them take in a kid who needed someone.</p><p>Anyway, I don't know if there will be anything more for this universe. If you guys have any questions about Danai, I'd be happy to consult my notes and answer any questions (or make an answer up on the spot), but otherwise, I think it's time, guys. I know I've said that before, but this time I think I actually mean it.</p><p>Truly, an end of an era.</p><p>Anyways, like I said, any questions can be left in comments that I most certainly will get to (answering your comments gives me life), or, if Tumblr is more your speed, you can find me over at hellofromthe-otter-slide.</p><p>Until the next fic!</p>
        </blockquote><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Okay, so I know a lot of you asked me to see a Catradora wedding, but hear me out. They were raised as soldiers in an environment where weddings weren't necessarily a thing, so, yeah. My Catradora here doesn't feel the need to get married, and C'yra and Felix support that decision.</p>
<p>And Glimmer pesters a little.</p>
<p>If you have any prompts you would like to see in this universe, let me know! I've got another one mostly finished (it needs a bit of finessing), but I'd love to sort of keep going until I run out, ya know? If Tumblr is more your speed, come find me at hellofromthe-otter-slide. I'd love to hear your thoughts on the final season or any opinions you may have.</p>
<p>Until the next chapter!</p></blockquote></div></div>
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